| Sidney New York is located on approximately two square miles in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains
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Sidney is located at the junction of Interstate 88 and State Route 8, making the cities of Oneonta, Binghamton, and Utica readily accessible. |
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The locality now known as Sidney, New York, began its history at the
junction of the Susquehanna and Unadilla Rivers. Over the centuries,
the Oneida and Iroquois tribes used the area because of the convergence
of the trails along the rivers, which they used for transportation.
At least two, and probably more Native American tribes made their home in the Sidney area. |
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Recorded history of Sidney |
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| The recorded history of Sidney began in the early 1770's when Reverend William Johnston built his home in the location of the current Sidney Airport. | The
area was referred to as the Johnston Settlement or Sidney Plains and
was geographically part of the Otsego County and the township of Unadilla.
During the American Revolution Reverend Johnston and most of the non loyalist population of the area fled to Cherry Valley for protection from the pro-British Native Americans and the Tory claim-jumpers. In July 1778, in order to scatter Native Americans, New York's Governor Clinton ordered Colonel William Butler to burn their villages along the Susquehanna River. Soon after Reverend Johnston and the other white settlers returned to the area. In 1796 the state legislature subdivided Otsego County. Delaware County was created from this subdivision. Later the Town of Sidney was subdivided to create the Town of Masonville. |
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During its formative years |
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| Sidney's economic base consisted of farming, timber, potash harvest, and services catering to farming needs. | Within
a decade, Sidney built three hotels, doubled its population, and attracted
more industry.
In October 1866, the Albany and Susquehanna Railroad began service to Sidney. The Albany and Susquehanna was later purchased by the Delaware and Hudson Railroad. In 1873, the Ontario and Western Railroad, the O & W, connected a North running rail line to the D & H rail line, and Sidney became a railroad hub. By 1910 the Village had a French cheese factory, silk mill, cigar factory, carriage works, glass works, novelty works, and the Hatfield car manufacturing plant. However, by 1920 as a result of bad luck and bad business, which included a series of fires and strikes, most of these businesses closed or left the area. There are now numerous smaller businesses and industries in the area. |
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Scintilla Magneto Company |
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| In 1925 Scintilla Magneto Company, a Swiss firm with headquarters in New York City, bought the old Hatfield building and began manufacturing magnetos in Sidney. | In
1929 the Bendix Aviation Corporation purchased Scintilla.
Over the years, Bendix gained a world-class reputation for aerospace products. Currently the company is known as Amphenol Aerospace Corporation. |
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Mead-Westvaco (Keith Clark) |
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| Keith Clark, the world's largest manufacturer of calendars, moved to Sidney from New York City in 1949. | Having
steadily expanded their calendar business, today they employ more than
a thousand people. In addition to calendars, Keith Clark manufactures
all varieties of time management products, which they ship throughout
the world.
Currently the company is known as Mead-Westvaco Inc. |
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Una-Lam |
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| Una-Lam, a division of Unadilla Silo Company, moved to Sidney from Unadilla in 1963. | Una-Lam manufactures fire-resistant, laminated-wood arches, beams, storage sheds, swimming pools, hot tubs, and other wood products. |
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The Village of Sidney |
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The Village of Sidney maintains a
small airport, a police department, a volunteer fire
department and an emergency squad. The Town of Sidney oversees the
operation of The Hospital.
The Civic Center houses municipal offices and services. Most religious
denominations are represented, and the community supports a myriad of
service organizations and public interest groups. There is an AM-FM
radio station, a weekly newspaper, and the high
school operates a television station. The school district encompasses
two towns and parts of three others. The public library is chartered
to service the school district's residents. Currently the Village has a population of approximately 5,000. |
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Along
the banks of the Susquehanna River. Sidney is situated in the northwest
corner of Delaware County, abutting both Chenango and Otsego counties.