157 Netherwood AvenueOne of the earliest residents of the neighborhood, Chanie and Charles Webb purchased 4 lots in the "Big Woods" in 1905 and 1906.
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157 NETHERWOOD AVENUE
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Chanie and Charles Webb were perhaps the earliest African-Americans to purchase property (4 lots) in the neighborhood in 1905 and 1906.
Charles was born in 1860, had been married previously and had 4 daughters, all of whom eventually moved to the United States. He was a painter and carpenter, which may explain his use of a decorative mansard roof on the home he constructed. Chanie was from Virginia. In 1924, the Courier News dubbed Charles the “Mayor of the Big Woods”, owing in part to his longevity as a resident there, but also likely due to the support he and his wife provided to his neighbors and community. They were instrumental in the establishment of St. John’s Baptist Church in Scotch Plains in 1909; Chanie Webb was cited in 1915 for being assigned by the “Overseer of the Poor” to care for an elder neighbor. Chanie died in 1931, Charles in 1938. Charles’ surviving daughters conveyed their property to the Town of Westfield in 1968. |