Goshen historian Walter R. Nelson wrote his first history of Goshen at twenty years of age. It became the basis of his major work entitled History of Goshen New Hampshire Settled 1769 Incorprtaes (sic) 1791 which was published in 1957 and reprinted n 1984.
In 1902 Mr. Nelson just intended to collect stories from older residents, and then realized that no record of Goshen’s history existed. After collecting this information, he could not afford to have it printed, so he purchased “the smallest – and cheapest – printing press advertised in the The Youth’s Companion” which printed a 3×5 text. He printed 145 copies, working the press so hard that the cast iron pressure arm broke. Village blacksmith O.A. Lear made him a new one. The story of how this 1903 history of Goshen came to be is given by his daughter, Doris Nelson Newman:
In 1902 he was the victim of serious infection caused by a dog bite incurred while trying to save his own small animal from attack by a larger one. During his long convalescence he drove around town with horse and buggy, visiting the senior citizens of that day and recording their reminiscences of Goshen’s early history.
Upon his recovery he took the contract to split nearly thirty cords of maple and beech blocks or his uncle, Oren Farr. With the money earned from that labor, he purchased a small printing press on which he published his first history, An Historical and Industrial Ketch of Goshen, setting the type laboriously by hand. The small volume of ninety pages was bound in blue blotting paper and sold for thirty cents a copy.
Walter R. Nelson was a major figure in Goshen history, serving as Town Treasurer, School Board member, member of the library building committee, Ballot Clerk, Road Agent, Town Moderator, State Representative, as well as a lifelong local historian.