Berks County

Berks County is an administrative unit in southeastern Pennsylvania that covers 866 square miles (2,240 square kilometers) and includes the Schuylkill River and Blue Mountain. The landscape shifts between wooded mountains in the north and gentle piedmont hills in the south, with valleys and farmland in between.

The administrative unit was formed in 1752 from parts of Lancaster, Chester, and Philadelphia Counties and named after Berkshire in England, where William Penn's family came from. The textile industry dominated the economy during the 19th and early 20th centuries, especially in Reading, which became known as a center for hosiery manufacturing.

The Pennsylvania Dutch culinary tradition appears in local markets and family-run shops offering specialties such as shoofly pie and scrapple. In rural communities, you can still see horse-drawn buggies used by Mennonite families on the roads, particularly around Kutztown and Fleetwood.

French Creek State Park offers hiking trails and camping areas, while Nolde Forest provides wooded paths and quiet walks through hardwood trees. The Reading Public Museum in the county seat of Reading displays collections on art, natural history, and regional topics.

During the height of the textile industry, Reading held the title of the world's leading city for producing seamless stockings and full-fashioned hosiery. Today, former factory buildings, some converted into apartments or outlet stores, recall this industrial past.