The Historic Preservation Trust of Berks County (HPTBC) will celebrate another year with our second annual gala dinner at the Reading Public Museum from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Nov.4. Join us for a beautiful evening of good food and drink as we highlight the important work of the Trust and its many 2017 accomplishments. A presentation on the Keim Homestead will follow dinner and guests can have their pick from a variety of silent auction items.
This year’s theme is the Jacob Keim Homestead. In December 2016, the Keim Homestead became Berks County’s third National Historic Landmark. The National Park Service describes the Keim Farmstead as being “an exceptionally intact example of early German American domestic vernacular architecture.” NHLs are nationally significant historic places designated by the Secretary of the Interior because they possess exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States. Today, just over 2,500 historic places bear this national distinction. More recently, the Homestead was the recipient of the 2017 Preservation Pennsylvania Stewardship Initiative Award. The award was for the Trust’s five-year restoration campaign on the 1753 house.
The feature presentation at this year’s dinner will be given by historian James Lewars and will focus on the local and national significance of the Keim Homestead, as well as some of the restoration work that has been completed on the property’s buildings. Mr. Lewars currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Historic Preservation Trust and volunteers at Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum. He has his Bachelor of Arts from Pennsylvania State University and worked for the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission for over 30 years at various historic sites throughout eastern Pennsylvania.
Pre-purchased tickets are required for this event. The cost is $60 for HPT members and $70 for non-members. The ticket includes catered dinner and two drinks. A reservation sheet can be printed off our website and mailed in with payment. Please visit www.historicpreservationtrust.org for additional ticket information.
The HPTBC is a non-profit organization that acquires, preserves, and maintains historically and architecturally significant properties in Berks County, Pennsylvania and educates Berks County and its’ visitors about the role these sites played in Pennsylvania and American history. The Trust seeks to foster community involvement and support in promoting awareness and appreciation of historic structures and encouraging their adaptive reuse. The Trust currently owns and maintains eight historically significant buildings in the greater Reading/Berks County area. Our office is located in the White Horse Inn on Old Philadelphia Pike in Douglassville. If you are interested in donating to the Trust please call 610-385-4762 or visit www.historicpreservationtrust.org.