Settlement in Berks County began with the Lenni-Lenape of the Delaware Nation. William Penn founded Pennsylvania in 1681, and in 1748 his sons Thomas and Richard established Readingtown, which became the county seat when Berks County was established in 1752. Many early arrivals, fleeing persecution after Europe's Thirty-Years War, spoke only German and became known collectively as the Pennsylvania Dutch, or more correctly, the Pennsylvania Germans. Predominantly farmers, they benefited from the area's rich soil and favorable climate. Berks County's iron production began before the Revolutionary War, and with coal from Schuylkill County and the Reading Railroad's Main Line, the Reading area manufactured bicycles, wagons, hats, clocks, shoes, brass, bricks, steam engines, and rope, among other goods. Helped by two World Wars, knitting mills and steel manufacturing became major industries. Captured German Hessians hired to fight for England during the Revolutionary War were detained on the slopes of Mount Penn after their capture at the battle of Trenton. The Distlefink bird came to represent happiness and good fortune among Pennsylvania Germans, and its likeness appeared on hex signs mounted on barns throughout Berks County and rural Pennsylvania. Today the area includes historic sites such as Hopewell Furnace, recreational places including French Creek State Park and Blue Marsh Lake, and nature destinations such as the Nolde Environmental Center and Hawk Mountain Sanctuary. Reading also has sports teams, five colleges and universities, outlet shopping, a performing arts center, a symphony orchestra, the Goggleworks Center for the Arts, and changing art and natural history exhibits at the Reading Public Museum. In 2015 the Greater Reading area received the International Mountain Biking Association's Bronze Ride Center status, and the Pagoda on Mount Penn overlooking Reading, built in 1908 to promote a luxury hotel that was never constructed, remains a notable landmark.