Spring has sprung, everything is coming back to life and in my opinion it is the most wonderful time of year. I went to visit Centre Park Historic District to capture some of what I find to be the most beautiful residential architecture within the city limits. 

Some of the most prominent mansions on Centre Ave date back to the 1870s, when the industrialists of that time were the first to build their estates on land then considered to be country. The vast majority of the development occurred around the turn of the 20th century, when the gorgeous row homes sprang up – allowing many normal working folks to also flock to the area – creating one of Reading’s first suburbs.

Centre Park was established as a historic district on October 27th, 1982 and is roughly bounded by Charles Evans Cemetery to the north, west by Centre Avenue, east by Fifth Street and south where those two converge.  

Some of the most prominent architectural styles represented in this district are the Queen Anne, The Reading-German, Gothic Revival, Georgian Revival and Victorian romanesque. These homes were a testament to the industrial powerhouse Reading was at the time they were built, and the wealth that resulted from it. Things have economically changed in those 150 years, however, these homes remain as beautiful as ever.