Historic Sketch of the Settlement of New Berlin, Chenango Co. NY

 Historic Sketch of the Settlement of the Town of New Berlin

by John Hyde

New Berlin Gazette, New Berlin, NY, November 25, 1876

About the year 1797, Thomas Brown, with his family and household goods journeyed up from Rhode Island, the land of his nativity, unto the land of New Berlin [Chenango Co. NY], and if it were not "a land of promise, flowing with milk and honey," yet it abounded in the amplitude of wild forest game and hillside streams filled with trout to supply the settlers with food.

One or two years previous, James and Barnabas, his sons, had been sent up to explore the new country, and prepare a dwelling place for the family.  They came with an ox team, bringing some necessary articles for the occasion and fixed the future home of the family on a lot situated on the Great Brook and commenced clearing a place among the forest trees to build a log dwelling house and whilst engaged in this now work, they made a brushwood bower to sleep in and for a canopy to protect them from the storms of rain and snow, whilst resting from their daily labor, the boards which formed the sled box of the expedition were taken to make the covering roof.   These boards were afterwards made into a coffin for a Mrs. Edwards, being the only material which could be procured for such purpose at the time, and Mr. Barnabas Brown, with a few tools bro't with him, made the boards into the proper shape and the rites of sepulture on that occasion, and for the first time in New Berlin's infant settlement, were performed with as much heartfelt mourning and sincerity of purpose as attend the extravagant and costly ceremonial services of the burial of the dead in modern times.

Mr. Thomas Brown died about the year 1814.  His son James brown inherited the homestead estate and, on his death, it descended to his heirs, where the title yet remains, and the place is now [in 1876] occupied by Agrippa Butts as tenant.

Barnabas Brown, in the course of events, went out from his father's house and took to himself a wife.  He married a daughter of Nathaniel  Medbury and settled on the lot next to Samuel Anderson's lot on the west.  He commenced housekeeping in a new log house which he had erected for that purpose near where the old orchard is on the north side of the road, running east to west through the farm.

That orchard was amongst his first works after he commenced clearing up the farm.  The old log house has long since disappeared, but the orchard remains, a monument of labor done in youth's bygone days.  A few years employed in clearing up his farm and he was enabled to build a more commodious dwelling house where yet may be seen the now old red painted one story, steep roof building which was the residence of Judge Barnabas Brown, amidst his happy family of sons and daughters, through a long and useful life spent in private and public employment.

In the days of the Council of Appointment, Barnabas Brown received a commission as Justice of the Peace for the town of New Berlin and acted in that capacity several years to the terror of evil doers and the satisfaction of the orderly inhabitants. Esquire Brown was elected and performed the duties of Supervisor for many years in succession in which office he has always been reputed, even down to the present day, the best supervisor the town has ever had.  He also held the office of a judge in the Court of Common Pleas for Chenango County in the Clintonian limb of State politics.  Judge Barnabas Brown was a much-respected member of society and like the Patriarch Abraham, "died in good old age, an old man and full of years and was gathered to his people."  And on his tomb may be written the epitaph:  Here lies "an honest man, the noblest work of God."