John Hoyer Updike was an American novelist, poet, short-story writer, art critic, and literary critic. One of only four writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction more than once, Updike published more than twenty novels, more than a dozen short-story collections, as well as poetry, art and literary criticism and children's books during his career.
Berks County is a county located in the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 428,849. The county seat is Reading.
Reading is a city in and the county seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania. With a population of 95,112 as of the 2020 census, it is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Allentown. Located in the southeastern part of the state, it is the principal city of the Greater Reading Area, home to 420,152 residents. The city is part of the Delaware Valley.
Shillington is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania. With a population of 5,273 at the time of the 2010 census the borough is nestled amongst other suburbs outside Reading. It is perhaps best known for being the location of the homestead to Pennsylvania's first governor, Thomas Mifflin, and as the childhood home of American author John Updike. Many of Updike's stories take place in the fictional town of Olinger, a lightly-disguised version of Shillington, and in its environs.
Sevierville is a city in and the county seat of Sevier County, Tennessee, located in eastern Tennessee. The population was 17,889 at the 2020 United States Census.
Harriet Rebecca Lane Johnston acted as first lady of the United States during the administration of her uncle, lifelong bachelor President James Buchanan, from 1857 to 1861. She has been described as the first of the modern First Ladies, being a notably charming and diplomatic hostess, whose dress-styles were copied, and who promoted deserving causes. In her will, she left funds for a new school on the grounds of Washington National Cathedral. Several ships have been named in her honour, including the cutter USCGC Harriet Lane, still in service, as of 2021.
Henry Francis du Pont was an American horticulturist, collector of early American furniture and decorative arts, breeder of Holstein Friesian cattle, and scion of the powerful du Pont family. Converted into a museum in 1951, his estate of Winterthur in Delaware is the world's premier museum of American furniture and decorative arts.
Ardenwood Historic Farm is a Regional Historic Landmark in Fremont, California. It is managed by the East Bay Regional Park District. The Ardenwood Historic Farm consists of the Ardenwood Station, the former Ohlone village and burial site, a blacksmith shop, an area with farm animals, Patterson House, and a gazebo. The Ardenwood Farm today is a working farm, producing grain and vegetables.
The Mordecai House, built in 1785, is a registered historical landmark and museum in Raleigh, North Carolina that is the centerpiece of Mordecai Historic Park, adjacent to the Historic Oakwood neighborhood. It is the oldest residence in Raleigh on its original foundation. In addition to the house, the Park includes the birthplace and childhood home of President Andrew Johnson, the Ellen Mordecai Garden, the Badger-Iredell Law Office, Allen Kitchen and St. Mark's Chapel, a popular site for weddings. It is located in the Mordecai Place Historic District.
Governor Mifflin Senior High School is the only high school in the Governor Mifflin School District. It is located in Shillington, Berks County, Pennsylvania and serves students in the Reading area. It is named for the prestigious Revolutionary War major and first governor of Pennsylvania, Thomas Mifflin.
James J. "Jim" Gallen was a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
William Lightfoot Price was an American architect, a pioneer in the use of reinforced concrete, and a founder of the utopian communities of Arden, Delaware and Rose Valley, Pennsylvania.
Richardson Brognard Okie Jr. (1875-1945) was an American architect. He is noted for his Colonial-Revival houses and his sensitive restorations of historic buildings.
The Pennsylvania Almshouse Painters were three self-taught artists; Charles C. Hofmann, Louis Mader and John Rasmussen, who are almost exclusively known for their paintings of the almshouse in Berks County, Pennsylvania, done in an early folk art style. They were all born in Germany.
Captain Samuel Van Leer was a military officer from Pennsylvania who served as a captain in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and as lieutenant in the Chester County Light Horse Volunteers from 1781 to 1785. After his retirement from the military, he owned the Reading Furnace ironworks.
The Curtis and Jones Company Shoe Factory was a major shoe manufacturer located in Reading, Pennsylvania that operated from 1902 to 1974.
The Hotel Abraham Lincoln is a historic building and former hotel in downtown Reading, Pennsylvania. Opened on May 23, 1930, the Lincoln was one of Reading's original nine grand hotels. The hotel was the last of the grand hotels to cease operations, doing so on November 1, 2016.
The Berks County Trust Company is a historic building in downtown Reading, Pennsylvania. Originally constructed in 1909, the six-story building was home to a bank known as the Berks County Trust Company and was the second largest bank branch in Berks County. The building still contains the original 1909 bank vault from the York Safe and Lock Company used by the building's eponymous bank. The building had additions built onto it in 1933, 1964 and 1984.
Linda Grace Hoyer Updike (1904-1989) was an American writer from Plowville, Pennsylvania. She was the mother of author John Updike and grandmother of writer David Updike. Linda Updike also served as the model for several of her son's characters, including one of the main characters in the novel Of the Farm.
