Berks County Celebrates the Berks Liberty Bell with Ceremony on July 8

The Berks County Commissioners would like to invite local legislators, the
media, and the public to a patriotic ceremony on Monday, July 8, at Noon at the Berks County Liberty
Bell on the first floor of the Berks County Services Center.
The Berks County Liberty Bell was first rung 248 years ago 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 will include colonial reenactors, an explanation of the history involved, and a reading of
sections of the Declaration of Independence in German. When the Declaration was first read in Berks
County in 1776 by Berks County Sheriff Henry Vanderslice, 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. We honor that unique heritage with a partial
reading in German. This year the English reading of the complete Declaration of Independence will be
done by Sheriff Eric Weaknecht.
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.