Historical Sketch of New Berlin, Chenango Co. NY (1877)

 Historical Sketch of the Settlement of the Town of New Berlin

By John Hyde

New Berlin Gazette, New Berlin, NY, May 19, 1877

Aruna Welch, another early settler in New Berlin village had his dwelling house on North Street now owned [in 1877] and occupied by Widow Howard, and he occupied the same shop where Augustus C. Welch made nails, for his paint shop he being a house painter by trade.  He was a sociable and genial man and enjoyed the blessings of a happy disposition.  About the year 1820 he moved into the Ohio country, as it was then called.  He sold his homestead to Dyer Tracy who afterwards sold it to a gunsmith by the name of Jackson who acquired the name of "Stub and Twist" Jackson, for making stub and twist rifles, as he termed them, because he manufactured old nail heads and nail points procured from blacksmith shops into rifle barrels.  Mr. Jackson had a numerous family of sons and daughters.  Some of his sons worked with him in his gun making trade.  He was industrious and a good gun maker.  He sold his house and lot to Orsemus Clarke, a blacksmith, and moved back to Louisville.  Mr. Clarke occupied the place some years, was an industrious worker at his trade, built a new dwelling house on the site where the Aruna Welch dwelling house stood.  His wife was Thomas Steere's daughter.  He sold the place to Widow Harris and purchased the corner lot opposite the Blakeslee premises, on Geneseo Street, built the house now on the premises, lived there some time and finally went over into Pittsfield to a place where he carried on farming and hop raising the remainder of his days, leaving to his widow and his son, Charles, his property, acquired by prudent, economical habits and honest labor.

Vine Welch owned the next dwelling house and lot north of the Welch lot.  He was one of the first settlers in the village and by trade a maker of spinning wheels, both great and small; the one for making yarn from wool and tow, the lesser wheel to spin flax into thread, or yarn to be woven into linen cloth and quill heals to wind skeins of yarn for the weaver's shuttle.  In the spring season of the year the buzzing spinning wheels made manifest that the farmers' thrifty wives and daughters were busy at their accustomed avocations.  In the days when homespun cloth was made into wearing apparel for the men and women, Mr. Vine Welch found abundant employment in supplying his customers with the means of making their own clothing by hand.  His widow and children remained on the place some years after his decease.  The two daughters married and moved into the western states.  His  son remained on the place and worked at the carpenter's trade some years.  He purchased the hatter's shop belonging to Sylvester Walker which stood on the place where now [in 1877] stands the brick dwelling house owned and occupied by Ira Butterfield and moved it onto the premises and used it for his workshop.  The building is the long two-story part of the dwelling house now [in 1877] owned by Mrs. Thurber.

Vine Welch sold the premises to Mr. Willard, who occupied them several years before his decease, when the title passed to his daughter-in-law by will, who now owns the place and rents it to tenants.

Sylvester Walker, of whom mention has been made, was a hatter by trade, served his apprenticeship with Mr. Worthington at Cooperstown, married a sister of General DeForest's wife, bought the house and lot now owned and occupied [in 1877] by Frederick Furman and bought the lot now owned [in 1877] by Mr. Butterfield, built the hat shop as already mentioned, and carried on the hatter business several years and finally sold out and went into one of the western States.  He came to New Berlin about the year 1817, was one of the prominent citizens while he remained in New Berlin and was a sociable and good neighbor.  Mr. Meacham first owned the premises and built the dwelling house which he sold to Mr. Walker.  He was a chair maker and many of his chairs are yet in being.  In the early days of the settlement, wood was plenty and mechanics made their ware more for durability than for ornament.  Mr. Meacham was an industrious worker at his trade and after selling his homestead to Mr. Walker he departed for the western country.

Mr. Nehemiah Dyer worked in the old cotton factory several years and after accumulating a sufficient sum to enable him to buy a wild lot, he purchased the lot back of the Great Brook which he cleaned up and lived on until his decease, leaving a good property to his wife and children.  HIs wife was a daughter of John Blackman, who worked in the machine shop with Dyer.  This Mr. Blackham was by trade a cabinet and chairmaker and a first-rate workman.

Mr. Dyer was a good farmer and a much-respected citizen.  HIs wife made cheese of a superior quality, and better adapted to the taste of lovers of good cheese than can be found in modern cheese making factories.  Mr. Dyer left his estate to his wife and children.  One of his sons married a daughter of William Jackson, a wagon maker, who was an emigrant from England.