Illustration from 1860 shows factory of Irvington’s first manufacturing company

IRVINGTON, NJ — A random search of the internet by Irvington township historian Alan A. Siegel recently led to the chance discovery of the only known illustration of the Belcher Bros. Rule Co. factory, Irvington’s first manufacturing company and arguably its most important 19th-century industry. An 1859 map locates the factory at the northern terminus of what is now Drake’s Lane, on the east side of the Elizabeth River. 

The black-and-white drawing shows a large, four-story building perched alongside the river, with farmland in the distance. A waterfall and smaller two-story building to the left of the scene likely depicts the firm’s original source of power, a water wheel driven by the river, which was then significantly wider and deeper than it is now. Newer buildings at the center of the drawing feature a tall chimney belching a plume of smoke, evidence that by 1860, when the drawing was published, Belcher Bros. had converted its machinery from water power to steam power. A horse-drawn wagon labeled “N. York Express” shows how the firm’s finished product was transported to 233 Pearl St. in New York City, where its retail store was then located.

The Belcher family established its rule factory in what was then known as Camptown in 1835. Using unpatented trade secrets, the company manufactured a wide assortment of boxwood rulers used extensively by carpenters, draftsmen, sail makers, furniture makers and others requiring accurate measurements. By the middle of the 19th century, rules made at the Irvington factory were considered the finest available in the United States. At its peak, the factory employed more than a score of workers.

A fire in December 1868 leveled all but one of the buildings. Relocating to more spacious quarters in Newark, the firm remained in business until 1906. William Belcher, the family patriarch, was a prominent member of the community, serving as a township committeeman, county freeholder, incorporator of the Newark and Clinton Plank Road Co., and first president of Clinton Cemetery.

The factory illustration appears in a price list published by the company in 1860.