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Authored by Society president George Meiser IX |
| Posted 09-27-2003
TEN News-Bits of Reading-Berks historical interest…. ============= =========== ============ ============= =========== ============ 1- Society's monthly BCTV program this WED., Oct. 1st, at 7 2- First Thursday program: 2 Poplar Neck 18th Century mansions 3- "Preserving Family History" at Society-Sat., Oct. 4th at 9:30 4- PHOTO: Reading's Model Electric Home at 544 N. 12th 5- Church records needed AND a dynamite tale! 6- RARE Jack Luden film in Society library in DVD/VHS form 7- Another Burma-Shave sign-site located near Oley Village 8- Cliff Lamoree, celebrated artist, at Society Thurs., Nov. 7th 9- Berks Genealogy Society event Sat., Oct. 11th - 8 to 4 - $5 10- Death of Wm. H. Nagle, West Reading jeweler, at 86. ================ ============= ========== ================ ============= ========== 1- Our monthly BCTV program, this coming WED., Oct. 1st at 7, will feature a series of amazingly clear 70-year-old aerial views of Reading---showing sites close up. See Lauer's Park baseball field, the Schuylkill Canal, Outer Station, etc. A special sneak-preview presentation of the choice items to be seen at the Annual Berks County Art Show at Greshville Antiques….works by Ben Austrian, Ed and Chris Shearer, J. Heyl Raser, Ralph Dunkelberger, etc. You can see our monthly tv show by accessing: http://www.berkshistory.org/realaudio/hill.ram For locals: Our BCTV program repeats Friday at 10, Sat. at 6, and Sunday morning at 9. ================ =========== ============ 2- Our First Thursday program for Thursday morning, Oct. 2, features EXTRAORDINARY views (80 of them!), contrasting two 18th century Poplar Neck (Cumru Twp.) mansions, walking distance apart. One is well known because of its prominent location; the other is all but unknown-and abandoned. I'm betting you've never seen it. The interiors will genuinely amaze you. This is a must-see program. Our featured speaker is Susan Miller-Speros who wrote the lead story in the current "Historical Review." I've heard part of what Ms. Speros will present and am mightily impressed. First Thursday programs offer a light breakfast at 8:30; slides start at 9 and end at 10. Members: $1 Non-members: $2 =============== ============== ============ 3- Special Program at our Society, 940 Centre Ave., Reading: "Preserving Your Family's History," presented by Heather Tennies, archivist at the Lancaster County Historical Society. SATURDAY, Oct. 4th - 9:30 to 11:30. Fee: $7. We have room for a few more people, members or non-members. Pre-registration is required as the group will be limited to 20. Call 610 - 375 - 4375 and ask for Barbara. The program will cover organizing and properly preserving documents, such as letters, deeds, and clippings. There will be examples of storage options and supplies as well as a prepared list of vendors and conservators. Participants are asked to bring a sample or two from their collections for discussion. Note: This particular seminar will not include photos or textiles. ============= =============== ============ 4- FROM THE PHOTO ALBUM: A postcard view of a Model Electric Home's dining room, as touted by Meco (Metro- politan Electric Co.). The location is at 544 North 12th St., Reading.  Careful examination of the view seems to show that the dining room ceiling light is the only thing electric to be seen! It must have been a dandy! =============== ============= ============= 5- A few News-Bits ago, the following request appeared: YOUR help is needed! We need records from the following Berks churches: Faith Lutheran, Mt. Penn Friedens UCC, Oley Friedens Lutheran, Oley Good Shepherd Lutheran, Muhlenberg Twp. Grace Lutheran, Shillington Hope Lutheran, Bowers Incarnation Lutheran Rosedale UCC St. John's Lutheran, Sinking Spring Trinity Lutheran, Leesport Zion (Spies) Lutheran, Alsace Twp. We will make copies and return the originals and provide to the church congregation an every-name index. If you can help us gain access to the records listed above, please call the Society at 610 - 375 - 4375 and ask for Mrs. Brophy. It's very helpful for congregations to have a second set of records available, especially an indexed set. Three or more times the Society came to the rescue, providing congregations with their records which in two fairly recent cases simply disappeared from the church. In another instance, records were destroyed by a fire. When the "fireproof safe" was opened, what remained was so badly charred that pages fell apart when touched. THEN, in the Reading Eagle of Wed., Sept. 24th, it was reported that burglars broke into New Jerusalem Union Church in Rockland Twp., TWICE in three days, and on the second occasion took the safe which contained an old deed and historical documents/records. (It's pretty well known that many congregations keep their historical records and precious old photos in the church safe…..) The burglars took the safe from the basement of the church at 27 Lyons Rd., moved it to the cemetery, and blew it open. MOST of the papers were found in a nearby wooded area. We did some checking at the Society and find that we have duplicates of some of the congregational records---from the late 1800's to the end of WWII. Wonder why we don't have anything after that? =============== ============= ============ 6- It's a long story how for months we've tried to lay hands on a rare Jack Luden movie, one in which he was the lead actor, alongside Tuffy, the Wonder Dog! Three times "Rolling Caravans," made in 1938, was listed on eBay as "a rare one-hour 16mm feature film in excellent condition." Twice your editor was outbid in the last seconds of the auction. Third time around it was ours!  Jack or John Luden, 1902-1951, real name Jacob Benson Luden, was born and reared at 916 North 5th St., Reading. He attended nearby 5th and Spring School and was a nephew of Wm. Luden, the candy-maker who years ago lived nearby. The Society's talented video-whiz, Joe DeAngelo, expertly converted the 16mm film to both DVD and VHS formats, both now in the Society's library collection. ============== =============== ============= 7- A recent News-Bits segment featured a bit of Burma- Shave history and some samples of the segmented, humorous poems. Many of us remember seeing the roadside signs in our youth, at various locations throughout the county. At this juncture, however, the exact locations tend to elude us. John Moxon from Oley reports: "When my family moved here in the 1940's, prior to the end of WWII, there was a series of Burma-Shave signs on the Reiff and Hoffman properties along Friedensburg Road, about one mile west of Oley." ============= =========== ============== 8- Mark your calendars for Thursday, Nov. 6th, for on that day we will be privileged to have Clifford W. Lamoree, a celebrated artist living in Honey brook, at the Society to present an illustrated talk based on his work---which will make you sit up in amazement.  His work appears in permanent collections in major museums all over the country, it appears in numerous books about art and artists, and the list of his awards and exhibits fills a dozen 8.5 by 11 pages. He's represented in the State Museum of PA in Harrisburg. Last Sunday, he was honored as the 2003 artist of the year by the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts at a special exhibit at historic Yellow Springs, at Chester Springs, PA. Mr. Lamoree will be the featured speaker at our NOV. First Thursday program, 8:30 a.m., Nov. 6th. YOU are invited. =============== ============= ========== 9- The Berks County Genealogical Society will hold its annual Genealogical Gala---or "Market Place" --- on Saturday, Oct. 11th, from 8 to 4. Admission charge: $5 Location: 3618 Kutztown Rd., Laureldale, in the Muhlenburg elementary school complex. This is always a fascinating event, even for the casual history or genealogical buff. Lots of vendors are on hand to display a wealth of books and misc. materials. Crafters, artists, and quilters, etc. will also be on hand. Publishers, research specialists, photo restoration experts, and scrap book suppliers will have the forms, materials, displays, and demonstrations to help you put your collections in order. Note: It's my understanding that Janet McFarland of Retrospective Publishing Co. will be at the event. It was she who prepared those wonderful searchable CD's of Montgomery's 1886 and 1909 Berks histories. If you wanted to get one of those CD's and never got around to sending away for it, this is your chance to pick it up on the spot. For more information on the vendors and speaker and demonstration times, access: http://www.berksgenes.org =============== ============ =========== 10- William H. Nagle, 86, well-known West Reading jeweler, died on Mon., Sept. 22nd, at the Masonic Home at Elizabethtown where he had been a guest since June 26th. Formerly, he resided on Gerard Ave., Wilshire. He was the husband of Adelaide S. (Kreitz) Nagle. He was owner-operator of the William H. Nagle jewelry store in West Reading from 1959 to his retirement in 1997. He was a 1936 graduate of Muhlenberg H.S. and completed a four-year apprenticeship at Textile Machine Works. He attended Wyomissing Polytechnic Institute, the Phil'a College of Horology, and the Gemological Institute of Am. He was a member of Calvary United Methodist Church, Mohnton. Nagle is survived by a son, a daughter, and a stepdaughter living in Hamburg. He also is survived by three brothers locally-Lawrence in Monocacy, John in Grill, and Robert in Cedar Top. And three sisters, one of whom, Lillian Wagner, lives in Laureldale. He was buried in Forest Hills Memorial Park, Reiffton. ============= ============== ============ ============= gmmix ======== end ======== |
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