The Berks County Commissioners held a special patriotic ceremony Friday afternoon at County Services Center to commemorate Berks County Liberty Bell.
The Berks County Liberty Bell was first rung on July 8, 1776, to gather the people of Reading and the county together to hear the first reading of the newly fashioned and ratified Declaration of Independence.
The ceremony included colonial reenactors, an explanation of the history involved, and a reading of sections of the Declaration of Independence in German. To explain, when the Declaration was read in Berks County in 1776, the German immigrant population was so large that many residents didn’t speak English. So the Declaration of Independence was read for the first time in both English and German in Berks County.
In conjunction with the Berks History Center and America250PA, the County of Berks is displaying the Berks County Liberty Bell with a reproduction of the Declaration of Independence until the end of 2026.
The installation is part of a community effort to recognize Berks County’s contribution to our nation’s history as we prepare to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 2026. Learn more at america250paberks.com
