CHAPTER ONE

SOUTH HARTWICK

Ida Bilderbeck’s hometown of South Hartwick is part of what is now called “Leatherstocking Country,” in reference to James Fenimore Cooper’s series of stories, “Leatherstocking Tales.” Cooper grew up ten miles from and 75 years earlier than Ida. The area they shared is one of gently rolling ancient hills in the center of New York State, between the Adirondack Mountains to the north and the Catskills to the south.

Some of the early settlers in this area were Revolutionary War veterans, who were eager to establish homesteads on land that had, in some cases, been granted to them for their military service. One of the advantages of moving to Otsego County was that large pieces of property could eventually be owned outright instead of leased or rented. However, many years of hardship and subsistence living were initially required to really get a toehold in this area. Determination and hard work were the keys to survival.

With the influx of settlers, there became a need for grain and lumber mills convenient to their farms. By 1800, these small mills were the beginnings of the communities that would flourish in Otsego County in the 19th century, South Hartwick being one of them. The fledgling communities became distinct entities within the larger townships, each with its own unique character.

The New York ‘frontier’ became a fruitful place for merchants and tradesmen to establish themselves as well. South Hartwick had its own school, post office, two stores, a three story hotel (The Arbor House) and the blacksmiths, carpenters, and other craftsmen needed to make it all work. It was a self-contained community. They produced plays, had musical groups and even a ball team. This was the town Ida Bilberbeck knew growing up.

Chester Rockwell’s huge South Hartwick woolen mill burned down in 1861, but fortunately that one event did not signal the downfall of the community. The surrounding farms had grown enough in number and population to keep the community thriving until the Industrial Revolution started seeping into rural areas in the next century. The stagecoach route that passed through South Hartwick transformed into an early electric railway, the Southern New York Railroad. Otsego County’s booming hops industry brought in the hard currency that was so beneficial to the economy and growth of the area.

We can read in Ida’s own words the hardships and the good times that her family endured in the year of 1877. But no matter what she was going through, she always had the beautiful hills of Otsego County to play in, to get lost in, and to ground herself when she needed to. That alone marked her as a South Hartwick girl for life.