Morlatton Village Celebrates 300 Years in Amity

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by the Historic Preservation Trust of Berks County.

The Historic Preservation Trust of Berks County (HPTBC) invites you to join us for its summer and fall Third Saturday Programs. 

This year’s series will celebrate Morlatton Village and the 300th anniversary of Amity Township. 

These site-wide programs are offered  through October and include various formats and topics such as exhibits, demonstrations, interactive sessions, and oral and graphic presentations. 

Tours of Morlatton Village will be offered when applicable. The program begins at the White Horse Inn. Suggested donation $2/person. All proceeds benefit the Trust. 

“Cooking with the Collier”

Scheduled for Aug. 17 at 10 a.m. , join Jay Erb as he cooks over an open fire and discusses charcoal making in the nineteenth century. 

Visitors will get to meet a collier from the year 1815 who will teach about cooking nineteenth century meals that often included bacon, ham, sugar, and coffee. 

Colliers were charcoal makers who work provided fuel for iron forges and furnaces. Colliers spent a great deal of time in forests working to turn wood into charcoal, therefore they needed to cook over an open fire using a minimum number of utensils. 

Jay Erb is a ranger at Warwick Park in Chester County.

“Mistress Douglass and Mr. Douglass at Home”

Scheduled for Oct. 19 at 11 a.m., join Trust volunteers Courtney McKay Stevens and Omar Hottenstein, dressed in eighteenth century period clothing, as they portray Mr. & Mrs. George Douglass and receive visitors in their 1765 Georgian mansion. 

Mary Piersall Douglass will speak about her life at home with Mr. Douglass and their family and friends. A man of Scotland, George Douglass prospered as a businessman in the early Manatawny region. 

Please note, this program will take place at the George Douglass House in Morlatton Village.

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. 

The 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.