Source: http://www.berlinlibrary.org/berhist_old.html
Berlin's roots go deep -- back to 1634 when the French explorer,
Jean Nicolet, became the first white man to visit the large
Mascoutin Indian village near Berlin. French voyageurs made the Fox
River a vital trade route and , in 1672, Louis Joliet and Father
Marquette camped here on their "Voyage of Discovery" down the
Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico.
In 1846, nearly 200 years later, the present bridge-crossing
site became Strong's Landing. In 1848, the year the post office
opened, the City of Berlin was founded. For decades, the city's
progress and growth was largely dependent on the Fox River. Daily
steamboat trips to Oshkosh and other ports began in 1854 and
continued until 1890.
Railroad service from Milwaukee began in 1857. An important area
industry was the quarrying and shipment of street paving
blocks.
Cranberries grown on nearby marshlands made Berlin a major
packing center with thousands of barrels shipped annually.
With a population of only 250 in 1850, the city grew to almost
2,800 by the panic of 1857, and after a brief decline continued to
grow to 5,366 in 1990. Berlin's growth resulted from an influx of
various ethnic groups: Germans, Irish, Poles, and Welsh joined the
original New England settlers. Together they created a town with
varied religious and educational institutions and distinctive
neighborhood patterns.
Paddle boats no longer ply the Fox River between Oshkosh and
Berlin, cigar making is no longer an important local business, and
horses no longer trot around the track at the old Berlin
fairgrounds. Those early days may be gone, but their legacy has
left an indelible mark on our community.
Today's Victorian homes, built in the nineteenth century,,
remain part of that heritage. When you visit the Gazebo, recall the
bygone days of Berlin's past. Consider the Victorian houses around
the square and view the water fountain, the civil war cannons and
war monument in our little town of Berlin.