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From: Thomas Patrick Livingston                    Date: 2011.02.01

Yesterday I searched the WWW for the Surname: FAATZ, and discovered 
that (3) of our Great Uncles back in the roaring 90's started
Manufacturing - Brushes for Horses and Woolen Felt Made Articles -- 
(probably Woolen Clothing Articles....like Hats etc.)  Cool...!!

In the city of Lestershire, NY, now known as Johnson City, NY. 

Our Great-Grandmother, Euphemia Walker Faatz, was 31 yrs of age in 1890,
when three of her brothers -

  1855 Gilbert H. Faatz     (age 35)
  1862 Frank L. Faatz       (age 28) and 
  1864 William Grant Faatz  (age 26), 
  
started a small Business in Lestershire in 1890: 


  The Faatz Brush and Felting Works

  
They were known as "The Felters".  They started by manufacturing brushes 
for horses.  This business eventually grew to over 100 employees!  

The three brothers sold the factory for $400,000 each - $1.2 million!

In the photo shown here is the former Faatz Felting Works factory
as it looked in 2010.

Here is the excerpt from the Binghamton Bicentennial website:

"The Faatz Brush and Felting Works constructed an impressive stone 
building in Lestershire (Johnson City) on the corner of Corliss Ave. 
and Arch Street in 1897.  The Faatz family operated the firm making 
numerous felt products well into the twentieth century.  Often called
"The Felters", the building was sold and converted after the company 
ceased operating.  It reopened many years later as Lescron's Book 
Outlet Company, which used the block-wide structure as a distribution 
and retail outlet until 1986."

Binghamton BiCentennial Minutes #43

..This site tells of the Faatz family business in paragraph 43.


More Info


Regards,
Cousin Tommy Livingston