The Lebanon Valley Historical Society Receives Grant

The Lebanon Valley Historical Society (LVHS), New Lebanon, has received a $3,485 grant for Phase 1 of a project to document the demise of the Tilden Pharmaceutical Company in New Lebanon. The grant was awarded by the Documentary Heritage Program of the New York State Education Department. The LVHS was one of eight entities in New York State to receive funding.
The History
In 1824, Elam Tilden started growing, processing and selling herbal pharmaceuticals in New Lebanon.  He established Tilden & Company, recognized as the oldest pharmaceutical company in the U.S. For over 120 years the agriculture and manufacture of medicines had a significant impact on the ecology and economy of New Lebanon.  The Tilden Company provided jobs, fostered ancillary businesses and was a major social connection for the residents of the town. In the mid-twentieth century it was bought by a series of pharmaceutical companies, the last of which closed the New Lebanon facility in the 1960s.
The Purpose
The purpose of the Tilden Project is to document the impact of this de-industrialization on the landscape and citizens of the Town. The history and disappearance of the company is hidden in varied and unknown public and private places. Most of the funding of Phase 1 will be for stipends for the archivist, Jim Corsaro, and the researcher, Steve Oberon, who will develop methods and tools and discover resources for information collection.
Phase 2, if funded, will be to collect the data from public records and private documents. This work will be done by the researcher and LVHS volunteers.
The third phase is the creation of archival records by the archivist.  These records will then be available to the public.
Looking For Information
The LVHS is interested in collecting information about the Tilden Pharmaceutical Company from personal memories or family records.  The LVHS can be contacted at P.O. Box 363, New Lebanon, NY, 12125.