BOYERTOWN — The Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles will host Diner Day inside a fondly remembered icon of Berks County on Saturday, Nov. 9, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
During Diner Day, guests can sit inside Fegely’s Reading Diner and enjoy coffee and homemade pie at 1938 prices — a nickel for a cup of coffee and a quarter for a slice of pie. Milk is available for younger patrons.
Built in 1938 by the Jerry O’Mahony Company of Elizabeth, N.J., the Reading Diner was a freestanding establishment along Route 422 in Exeter Township until 1950, when owner Howard Fegely moved it across the road and built his Fegely’s Family Restaurant around it. Well-protected for the next 53 years, the Reading Diner weathered beautifully, despite the hustle and bustle of the diners, cooks, and waitstaff surrounding it.
Following its closing in 2003, the Reading Diner was rescued by the Archbury Foundation, and, in 2008, the Foundation donated the building to the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles, where it sits today.
In addition, visitors will have full access to the Museum’s historic collection. Docents will be on hand to answer questions about the vehicles and provide insight into the rare machines on display.
Visitors will also have the opportunity to watch live blacksmithing demonstrations in the original Jeremiah Swinehart Carriage Factory, which is part of the Museum’s galleries and is open to the public daily.
Diner Day is made possible in part thanks to the generosity of Frecon Farms, The Kathy Barry Agency LLC, Dice’s Creative Cakes, Barnfresh Vintage Market, Pheasantland RC Park, Merkels Shoes, and Jukebox Cafe.
Regular contribution rates apply for admission on Diner Day: $10 for adults, $9 for seniors and AAA members, and ages 15 and under are free.
A 501c3 nonprofit organization founded in 1965 by Paul and Erminie Hafer, the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles, located at 85 South Walnut St. in Boyertown, preserves and displays examples of Pennsylvania’s road transportation history in the former factory buildings of the Boyertown Auto Body Works.
More than 90 locally manufactured cars, trucks, carriages, bicycles, and motorcycles are on display, as well as two examples of roadside architecture, a 1921 cottage-style Sunoco gas station and a 1938 Jerry O’Mahony diner. The Museum is open seven days a week, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For more information, call 610-367-2090 or visit www.boyertownmuseum.org.
