City Park, also known as Penn's Commons, was reserved forever as a parkland for the city of Reading by the sons of William Penn.
City Park is located in the northeast part of the city of Reading, PA. It has a lot of history as is documented in the WPA Guide ot Pennsylvania, written around 1933. The southern end of the park is home to the Volunteer Firefighter's Memorial documenting the Rainbow Fire department of 1733, the first fire volunteer fire department in the young United States.
At one time the city prison sat to the side of the park, sharing public hanging space with people picnicking and relaxing. The prison was moved to a different location in 1932 after it was determined that 90 cells for over 600 prisoners did not provide adequate accomadations.
In the northwestern part of the park, one can find the old Greenhouse which is still operational today, providing education on efficient planting to the city residents.
The eastern corner of the park is home to the Veterans' Grove Memorial, tributes to those who served in various wars.
Central in the park is an historic bandshell. The original bandshell was built in 1897 and a new and improved bandshell was built in 1939. A large play area is a short distance away offering basketball courts, tennis courts, a playground and a picnic pavilion.
Scattered throughout the park are memorials to various individuals or groups. One of the most poignant is a bell dedicated to a volunteer firefighter who died along with three other people in his attempt to rescue those people. Dedicated trees and dedicated benches are in abundance.