BBB Destination - Shartlesville

At the turn of the century, near Reading, Pennsylvania, Laurence Gieringer, age 5, often looked out of his bedroom window at night, gazing toward nearby Neversink Mountain. Going to work at age 16, Laurence, after a start in the printing trade, became a carpenter and painter, work which he felt gave more scope to his particular talents. Always he continued to work on his hobby of making model buildings. Skillfully, he whittled at blocks of wood, fashioning them to his dream of a miniature village … a church … bridges … a horse-drawn carriage … stables … farmhouses. He knew nothing of drawing to scale, yet arbitrarily established a size of 3/8" to the foot, which he adhered to in all his modeling.

So the years went by. Laurence had pursued his hobby for some 60 years, continually enhancing his skill and artistry. The miniature "village" had grown steadily in size and scope, and news of it began spreading through the countryside. At Christmas, 1935, Gieringer as usual set up a part of his miniature display for his children.

Every day through all 12 months of the year, throngs of visitors come to ROADSIDE AMERICA. The exhibit fascinates not only because of its authentic, beautifully crafted miniatures, but because of the excitement of continual movement. Swift trains glide through tunnels and over bridges … a tiny fountain bubbles in the miniature Zoo … a mountain trolley hustles through the woodland … an old-time grist mill slowly grinds grain for flour.