The Gruber Wagon Works and the C. Howard Hiester Canal Center will open their doors free of charge along with more than 1,400 other participating venues for the 8th annual Museum Day Live! on Sept. 24.
Hosted by Smithsonian magazine, this one day event allows people all across the country to learn more about their favorite participating museums free of charge. The Berks County Heritage Center previously participated in the Museum Day Live event and will do so again, providing the perfect opportunity for people to learn more about the local histories of the Gruber Wagon Works and the C. Howard Hiester Canal Center.
The Gruber Wagon Works and the C. Howard Canal Center are both part of the Berks County Heritage Center located at 1102 Red Bridge Road in Bern Township.
Erected in 1882 by Franklin H. Gruber, the wagon works evolved from a single craftsman shop having a variety of specialized hand tools, into a family operated business that employed up to 20 men who utilized mass production methods. After World War I, the wagon works adapted to manufacture wooden truck bodies and socket wrenches for the Model A Ford. It was relocated to the Heritage Center by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the late 1970s and is recognized as the finest example of rural manufacturing in the United States.
Around 1927 when the Schuylkill Navigation Company closed its longtime central headquarters in Reading, tools, ledgers, and other materials were thrown into the canal bed for fill. C. Howard Heister possessed a natural affinity for canals since childhood. Seeing the accumulated wealth and memorabilia about to be forever lost, Heister began collecting artifacts and other items from the Schuylkill Navigation system. Ultimately, he acquired the largest private collection of 19th century canal memorabilia in America with more than 1400 items. Heister donated his collection to the County of Berks in 1976. The Canal Center officially opened to the public in 1986, displaying the unique and one-of-a-kind artifacts for all to see.
The Museum Day Live! Ticket is available to download beginning at Smithsonian.com/museumday. Visitors who present the ticket will gain free entrance for two people, for one day only. One ticket is permitted per household, per e-mail address.
The Berks County Heritage Center entrance is adjacent to St. Joseph’s Hospital near the intersection of Route 222 and Route 183 in Bern Township.
