Holiday Tour Highlights Pottstown’s Finest Historic Buildings

POTTSTOWN — Despite a light rain that insisted on sticking around throughout the day, small groups of people took to the sidewalks throughout the borough Sunday for Pottstown’s 26th holiday historic building tour.

The Historic Pottstown By Candlelight tour was a hit again, with hundreds turning out to visit 20 century-old homes, churches and businesses that they might otherwise never notice.

“This house tour, if I’m going to say anything, brings out the positive of Pottstown,” said Sue Krause, a chief organizer of the event. “You drive by these places and you’d never know how lovely they are inside.”

By Sunday, more than 200 advance tickets were sold. The record for the event stood at around 313 several years ago — a reachable goal by the end of Sunday.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20121210/NEWS01/121209424/holiday-tour-highlights-pottstown-s-finest-historic-buildings#full_story

Former Pollock Mansion Highlights Pottstown Holiday House Tour

POTTSTOWN — The Historic Pottstown Neighborhood Association is bringing back its popular house tour, Historic Pottstown by Candlelight, on Sunday, Dec 9.  This year’s tour, planned after a one-year hiatus in 2011, will be the 26th version of what has become the most important holiday festival in the surrounding area.

The tour’s planners are this year breaking new ground by bringing participants a look at a more recently constructed home, one that was built in the 1940s.  No one today can recall the original owner’s name, but in 1946 it was purchased by William and Hindela (Orensten) Pollock and over the years it has became known to everyone as the Pollock Mansion.

The Pollock family name is readily recognized by most Pottstown-area residents as the owner of Mayer Pollock Steel Corp., 850 Industrial Highway.  This longtime Pottstown-based company was founded in 1888 by Mayer Pollock, who immigrated to America from Russia in 1884.  Like many men looking for a better life in this country, Pollock left his family behind and brought them here only after he made a home for them.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20121203/LIFE01/121209992/former-pollock-mansion-highlights-house-tour#full_story