Berlin, first settled in 1822 by William Sessions of Gilead, Maine, began as Maynesborough and was incorporated as the town of Berlin in 1829. The invention of the water turbine allowed early residents to harness the immense power of the Androscoggin River, which bisects the town. The arrival of the railroad in 1852 aided the transport of timber and later paper products, helping to give Berlin the nickname "the City that Trees Built." Incorporated as a city in 1897, what began as a small town grew until it was, for a time, the world's largest manufacturer of paper products.