Belcher Family Homestead and Farm
Why it's listed
This 199-acre farm on Route 38, about a mile south of Berkshire hamlet, is still worked today and holds buildings from several periods of local farming history. The earliest is a one-and-a-half-story clapboard house of about 1815, probably built by original settler Elijah Belcher, who arrived in 1805. It is believed to be the oldest surviving building in the township and reflects New England building traditions. His son, Aaron Putnam Belcher, probably built the larger c. 1850 farmhouse, a two-story clapboard structure with a steep roof and a finely detailed Carpenter Gothic porch. Nearby are an unaltered mid-nineteenth century board-and-batten barn and a late nineteenth century gambrel-roofed dairy barn with a domed silo. Together the buildings trace the move from grain and livestock production to dairying for urban milk markets after rail service reached Berkshire in 1869. The farm was listed as a compact, continuous record of the town's agricultural development.
Significance in brief: The farm contains intact examples of domestic and farm architecture spanning roughly 1815 to 1900. The c. 1815 Federal house is believed to be the oldest surviving building in the township, and the c. 1850 house is one of two local vernacular examples of Gothic Revival influence. The barns show the shift from grain and livestock production to dairying after rail service arrived in 1869.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 84003082, listed July 2, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | NY 38, Berkshire |
|---|---|
| County | Tioga County |
| Listed | July 2, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84003082 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | c. 1815 to 1900 |
| Architectural style | Vernacular Federal (c. 1815 house); Gothic Revival influence with Carpenter Gothic porch (c. 1850 house) |
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Agriculture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still a working farm; the original c. 1815 house is now used for farm storage. Condition is listed as good. |
| Acreage | 199 |
| Coordinates | 42.28355, -76.18762 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 84003082.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4882055
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.