1
200
75
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/86e53819be2de352184f4b53e7a85148.jpg
084e3b16279fd05f1b429786dd89234e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Firefighters
Description
An account of the resource
Rough chronology at <a href="http://www.nthistorymuseum.org/Collections/firefighting.html">NT History Museum</a>, including notes about many defunct companies. A provocative (if unlikely-sounding) morsel about Hydrant Hose Co. No. 3 (1886-1909), formerly based on Sweeney near Delaware bridge:
<blockquote>The fighting crew of the old Hydrant Hose Company liked to fight fires so much, they would first fight the men of any other fire company who raced to a North Tonawanda fire to see who got the pleasure of conquering the flames. Often the flames ended up as the victor as the firefighters spent their energies in a brawl rather than on the element of nature.</blockquote>
From Sarah E. Walter's thesis as it appears on <a href="http://www.nthistorymuseum.org/Collections/thesis.html#thesis">nthistorymuseum.org</a>:
<blockquote>The North Tonawanda Fire Dept is known as one of the best paid and volunteer departments in the nation. The greatest enemy the lumbermen had was fire. Annually it destroyed millions of dollars of lumber and cost many lives. A step forward came on May 7, 1876, when twenty of the most prominent residents of the Village of North Tonawanda gathered together in the school house at the corner of Main and Tremont Streets and formed themselves into a Company for the protection of property against the ravages of fire. The newly formed Company petitioned the Village Board and in special session on May 15, 1876, the board approved and appointed them firemen of the Village and their company was called the North Tonawanda Bucket Company, later to be called the Columbia Hook and Ladder Company No. 1.
<p>North Tonawanda depended heavily on Volunteer Firemen and quickly grew to seven companies located at important places around the city.</p>
</blockquote>
<table border="1" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1" align="center">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><strong>Date Started </strong></td>
<td><strong>Name </strong></td>
<td><strong>By Whom </strong></td>
<td> <strong>Notes</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>May 7, 1876</td>
<td>North Tonawanda Bucket Company / Columbia Hook and Ladder Company No. 1.</td>
<td> </td>
<td> (See below)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>March 1, 1886</td>
<td>Active Hose Company No.2</td>
<td> </td>
<td>"Ironton Boys"</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>1886*</td>
<td>Gratwick Hose Company No. 6</td>
<td>Village Council</td>
<td><a href="https://yellow.place/en/gratwick-hose-fire-company-6-north-tonawanda-usa">1890?</a> On Felton until 1962.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>April 1887</td>
<td>Live Active Hose Co. No. 4</td>
<td> </td>
<td> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>January 26, 1891</td>
<td>Rescue Fire Company No. 5</td>
<td> </td>
<td> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>February 6, 1891</td>
<td>Gratwick Hose Company No. 1</td>
<td> </td>
<td> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>1894</td>
<td>Sweeney Hose No. 7</td>
<td>Village Council</td>
<td> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<br /><br />From The<em> Tonawanda News, May 9, 1896:</em>
<blockquote>Monday, June 15, has been selected as the date of the Firemen's Annual Parade. It is expected that it will prove of more than ordinary interest as unusual efforts will be put forth this year to make it an enjoyable spectacular affair. <br /><br />In this connection it is interesting to note that Thursday of this week was the twentieth anniversary of the founding of the first fire company In North Tonawanda. Previous to this date North Tonawanda had paid Tonawanda $300 a year for the fire protection that the Tonawanda companies afforded. <br /><br />The parent company of North Tonawanda was the <strong>Columbia Hook and Ladder Company</strong>; it is still in existence, but is now one of eight splendid companies of which North Tonawanda can boast. As before stated it was organized May 7, 1876, and its first president was Frank Fellows. It was organized under a famous old hickory tree which stood on the ground now occupied by the parsonage of the First Methodist Church. Nicholas Beckrich was the first foreman of this company and other members of this crack organization were John E. Oelkers, Frank Batt, H. U. Berger, M. J. Wattengel, W. P. Hayes, Jno. Spillman, Aug. Duckwitz, Fred Schultz, Isaac Gardei, Geo. Miller, John Haas, Julius Miller and others. A number of these early firemen are numbered among the most prominent residents of North Tonawanda but it is with considerable pleasure that they recall the days of their early triumphs.</blockquote>
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Columbia Hook & Ladder near Erie bridge, photo (c1910).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1910
bridge
firefighter
person
village
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/13df86f3200f100810f0a1cb695c635e.jpg
40255c85a08eab897722aa75e40cf2eb
https://nthistory.com/files/original/23c1bd30180e61229cf142e306f17e21.jpg
32d44849deadd4f5fff880e9b3b7b6c9
https://nthistory.com/files/original/88d4289c8a806ef10fd038c56d9a991c.jpg
3c5e6890ed43e1831ebaef10193f1885
https://nthistory.com/files/original/6da82479665aae7d98e56ee09f37c7c8.jpg
6c0cc10b7b4e176ba70cfae5ac69603f
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Trolleys and Trains
Description
An account of the resource
Before everybody in North Tonawanda could afford their very own muffler-less Honda Civic to run up and down Oliver Street, trolleys and trains were an important means of personal transportation. Several lines ran throughout the city, moving people to and from their jobs, churches, or just out for a look around.
Though they may seem romantic to us now, people griped about the trolleys the same way we complain about snow plows today. Apparently their slow speed was sometimes targeted: An item in this set describes a "well-known peddler" in the Gratwick area who is injured by a trolley car. The author drolly observes, "'Twould have been a real miracle if a Gratwick car could have got up enough speed to have killed him" (Tonawanda News, 1908-2-13).
The trolley era did not last long. By the 1920s, the electric streetcar had been passed by the gasoline-powered bus as the most prevalent means of public transportation. Another article in this set from the Tonawanda News, "Carpenter now operates 14 busses in the Tonawandas," outlines the rise of the Carpenter Rapid Transit buses.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Electric Railway, Stumpf cabinet photo (1917-09-29).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1917-09-29
automobile
bridge
carriage
photo
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/f76e95ea46ee5cc58e0964364306d7c2.jpeg
901a40f27ae38ca3729be778729f52de
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Swing Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
Apr 21 1883 "An act to incorporate the Tonawanda Island Bridge Company, for the purpose of constructing and operating a bridge from Tonawanda island to North Tonawanda [passed]" - <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=IYJZAAAAYAAJ">Gen Statutes of State of New York</a><br /><br />"March 2, 1885 - Petition was received from H. M. Dodge & Co., asking permission to construct and maintain a swing bridge across Tonawanda Harbor, landing in Erie County to be at or near foot of Clay Street" - Tonawanda News, 1941-11-07. According to a Tonawanda News article, the southern bridge hadn't been used since the 1940s, when the Continental Can company closed.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
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Title
A name given to the resource
Swing bridge to Tonawanda Island, photo (George Hunter, c1965).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1965
bridge
swingbridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/ecd2d311b23825c7870aaa928fc9e5a1.jpeg
c6012bd034e279d756dd1272fd388145
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Cantilever bridge being tested, photo (c.1922, Bridgehunter.com).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1922
bridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/22c562d6865f9e1e435a1fff3161c262.jpg
56325e684107bff846f1181db1256315
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Long bridge damaged, train crossing canal, photo (1916-03-30).jpg
Description
An account of the resource
From <a href="https://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/highlight-for-xml?altUrl=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspaper%252011%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201916%2520Jan-Sep%2520Grayscale%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201916%2520Jan-Sep%2520Grayscale%2520-%25201258.pdf%23xml%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3Dffffffffd10f52cb%26DocId%3D1961679%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520U%26HitCount%3D47%26hits%3D23%2B89%2Bd7%2Bd8%2Bf1%2B102%2B1b4%2B202%2B215%2B217%2B442%2B492%2B4a6%2B595%2B5c4%2B64e%2B69e%2B88f%2B890%2B8bc%2B8da%2B8fe%2B928%2B92e%2B9d9%2Ba50%2Ba74%2Ba8b%2Bab8%2Bb23%2Bb9f%2Bbe8%2Bc44%2Bc5b%2Bc7d%2Bcaf%2Bcb7%2Bd39%2B1083%2B1128%2B112b%2B11e4%2B120f%2B12b0%2B12d5%2B12da%2B12e3%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&uri=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspaper%252011%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201916%2520Jan-Sep%2520Grayscale%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201916%2520Jan-Sep%2520Grayscale%2520-%25201258.pdf&xml=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3Dffffffffd10f52cb%26DocId%3D1961679%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520U%26HitCount%3D47%26hits%3D23%2B89%2Bd7%2Bd8%2Bf1%2B102%2B1b4%2B202%2B215%2B217%2B442%2B492%2B4a6%2B595%2B5c4%2B64e%2B69e%2B88f%2B890%2B8bc%2B8da%2B8fe%2B928%2B92e%2B9d9%2Ba50%2Ba74%2Ba8b%2Bab8%2Bb23%2Bb9f%2Bbe8%2Bc44%2Bc5b%2Bc7d%2Bcaf%2Bcb7%2Bd39%2B1083%2B1128%2B112b%2B11e4%2B120f%2B12b0%2B12d5%2B12da%2B12e3%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&openFirstHlPage=false">Tonawanda News</a>:
<blockquote>WATERLOGGED BOAT SWEPT OVER THE DAM A waterlogged canal boat came down the Tonawanda creek late last night and went over the old dam. It became lodged underneath the bridges at Webster street. The wrecking crew of the New York Central came here today to release the craft, fearyig that damage might result to the railroad bridge. A boat house was also swept over the dam last night. It piled up against one of the abutments of the Central's bridge and was broken to pieces.</blockquote>
Also pictured: Scanlon's Hall, State National Bank, Elks, Sweeney Building.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1916-03-30
bridge
canal
downtown
train
webster
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/9888865d818fdfd3b95d2c1666da18b3.jpg
89772e3e78806dafc2ddc25458599294
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Tonawanda Terminal completed, photo (NYSA, 1916-08-29).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1916-08-29
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/80ea2bebcfd63ba56f5b4466801c80a5.jpg
180a0fe6cdc84de3ebd951313b277e28
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
South abutment. Webster Street bridge, photo (NYSA, 1918-10-15).jpg
Description
An account of the resource
First Trust of Tonawanda.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1918-10-15
bridge
canal
tonawanda
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/6c502b1c517764d962a884e60479cc17.jpg
d9965d461ba3f005f2cc791f6b7365d7
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
North side of canal looking east from the Main Street Bridge in Tonawanda, photo (NYSA, 1909-03-09).jpg
Description
An account of the resource
Canal boats, bridge at Oliver before cantilever, Herschell merry-go-rounds on Sweeney.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1909-03-09
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/1098a487344a8680df6d8e6054acaada.jpg
2c09981e400649254b4b0bacad9cbcb7
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Main and Delaware Street Bridge, Tonawanda, photo (NYSA, 1905-05-12).jpg
Description
An account of the resource
Harvey H. Quinn of Buffalo boat.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1905-05-12
bridge
canal
tonawanda
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/446806d89b1f90560e437eb6f9c2e7df.jpg
51e4b6e1d86f043cc826e3c9c5096b5e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Main-Webster Street Bridge; north span, looking north, photo (NYSA, 1920-06-07).jpg
Description
An account of the resource
Scanlon, Sweeney Building, Real Estate Exchange, National Bank
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920-06-07
bridge
webster
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/b184399c0623d2055d82a54ca58df6d1.jpg
47d0210a2112c1eb79d33481126b695e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Main-Webster Street Bridge, Tonawanda; pier built. Erecting steel, photo (1919-11-10).jpg
Description
An account of the resource
Sweeney building, Van Raalte silk Mills
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1919-11-10
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/ffa054add5f8a24de7313095491486df.jpg
d3cd6805b60d5407206aa974a5a2e079
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Boats at Tonawanda Terminal, looking east, photo (NYSA, 1920-11-22).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920-11-22
bridge
canal
cantilever
tonawanda
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/40304dfb9ce0067ef3aa243587bef011.jpg
0256fc79774403d506ebe3321f47f3e7
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge, Tonawanda, looking north, photo (1920-11-22).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920-11-22
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/c5f75a154c2569824ef698a03af19196.jpg
cade3efa6447b9458c49fb3d10a62436
https://nthistory.com/files/original/5108088c1aa9623794a48d7853d841f1.jpg
92b10ddb89fd5e28c8a1d624813f688a
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Martinsville
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="../../../custom/cover/56.jpg" alt="Postcard view looking north up Old Falld Blvd" /><span class="cover-caption">Old Falls Boulevard, looking north from Lockport Ave. to Niagara Falls Blvd. Postcard detail, c.1900.</span> The northeast part of North Tonawanda known as "Martinsville" is named after the father of the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther. It is settled by German Lutheran farmers, beginning around 1843. They settled in narrow farms along the west bank of Tonawanda Creek. As the area developed, a "downtown" emerged along William Street, present-day Old Falls Blvd, near Lockport Rd. (pictured above). The village boasted its own post office, stores and places of entertainment. <br /><br />Most of Martinsville was incorporated into the then-booming City of North Tonawanda in 1897. The sections of Martinsville east of present-day Old Falls and Niagara Falls boulevards are considered part of Wheatfield.<br /><br />The real estate transaction that brought many of the settlers to the area, its early growth, and the contentious religious devotion of its people are described in <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/606"><em>History of Niagara County 1821-1878</em></a>:
<blockquote>In 1843 Carl Sack, Erdman Wurl and Fred Grosskopf purchased of William Vandervoote 400 acres, at $15 per acre, on the Tonawanda creek, in the southeast corner of the town, four miles east of Tonawanda village, in what is now known as the village of Martinsville. Lutheran religious antecedents caused the adoption of this name by the disciples of Martin Luther. The original purchase was divided into small lots of three acres and up- ward, as others were able to purchase, to provide for the location of thirty families the first season. They erected ten log houses in the autumn, each of which was occupied by three or four families during the winter and until joint efforts relieved the immigrants by building others. The families remained in Buffalo until the first houses were built, obtaining the best accommodations they could find. Forbidding as the prospect in the beginning must have been, it has been changed to the appearance of prosperity. The church organization is the controlling element in the government of the community, now consisting of one hundred families, connected with the two now existing, the result of divided feeling, but not an abandonment of the Lutheran faith.</blockquote>
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bushes Bridge across Erie Canal, Martinsville, postcard (c1920).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920
bridge
canal
martinsville
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/0da449b6d05eb7ef7cc29737692bee62.jpg
92dc3d873c5a195fd71071cf110f6b12
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Tonawanda Dam, looking S, photo (1916-04-10).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1916-04-10
bridge
canal
dam
long
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/7b2faf2875a6f57c535ce9acd48278d2.jpg
91d0cd8d33ce76891682a5d24b87566e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Swing Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
Apr 21 1883 "An act to incorporate the Tonawanda Island Bridge Company, for the purpose of constructing and operating a bridge from Tonawanda island to North Tonawanda [passed]" - <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=IYJZAAAAYAAJ">Gen Statutes of State of New York</a><br /><br />"March 2, 1885 - Petition was received from H. M. Dodge & Co., asking permission to construct and maintain a swing bridge across Tonawanda Harbor, landing in Erie County to be at or near foot of Clay Street" - Tonawanda News, 1941-11-07. According to a Tonawanda News article, the southern bridge hadn't been used since the 1940s, when the Continental Can company closed.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
South swing bridge in operation (c1950).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1950
bridge
creek
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/4b4c286e804a3f17ac656fc7697cf676.jpg
97fc214456f84f9e8e3d217a30d06694
https://nthistory.com/files/original/7489547397096a1acdbaf3bfeaa42b92.jpg
6fdc10cc96133103ae576081a209de4c
https://nthistory.com/files/original/5aeeae04e18433cd09871d3991b2f8a9.jpeg
14608892d97d76ad0d5113efc24fffa4
https://nthistory.com/files/original/d8ff1c6742a4859f9e6bb48904cc08f6.jpeg
9219e667733d09853dfa3bd2f8157f50
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Entrance to New Barge Canal, postcards (1912-1917).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1912
bridge
canal
collection
creek
hd
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/7ee2b100bfb4c40fec1cfc71305615f8.jpg
3a016c688e913e50da90d759dabce71e
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge opening over canal, photo (1921).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1921
bridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/bbc38dac5700fb25b023e93cde42bb4d.png
4724c23428affc3d64f002bd8537aa20
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Downtown
Description
An account of the resource
Most of North Tonawanda's downtown area developed between 1875 and 1900. In this collection are preserved views of many vanished buildings: The YMCA and City Hall at the southeast corner of Tremont and Main; the 6-story 1891 Smith building (Real Estate Exchange) at the northeast corner of Tremont and Webster, the gothic stone State National Bank at the northwest corner of Sweeney and Webster, and Scanlon's Hall on the southwest corner of the same intersection, to name a few.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
View from Real Estate Exchange building c1910, photo (Historical Society of the Tonawandas).png
bridge
canal
dam
tonawandacreek
trolley
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/c83c7872c72e56d0e35b25e71582b96f.jpg
156082d2a7e7b1c3db839e1b0478a079
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Railroad Bridge over canal at Vandervoort
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Bridge at Vandervoort carried Erie Railroad trains, electric streetcars--and apparently courageous pedestrians across the Tonawanda Creek and Erie Canal.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Bridges over Tonawanda Creek, aerial photo detail (1927).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1927
bridge
canal
creek
interpretive
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/ca5f1f9ce3fbce632dff76e209de3dd1.jpg
6a8a9676dbe41382e5fce237c832ce0e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Main Street, jack-knife, and Vandervoort bridges across NY Barge Canal, photo (Erie Canal Museum, 1920-11-21).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920-11-21
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://eriecanalmuseum.org/">Erie Canal History Museum</a>
bridge
canal
creek
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/89a941c73270584b144b2d323bf878fe.jpg
3e401a56a5df3dc56d56f427f0c48d42
https://nthistory.com/files/original/4948f1d1b829cee0b468cb6b173f1653.jpg
527425b7988766735d04b65c6035757a
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Derrick boat to remove Tonawanda dam, postcard (1918-01).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1918-01
bridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/c4772c4ef2abfdc766d41b819009a97c.jpg
42a62aae8c454b735a56aa13909487ac
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Trolleys and Trains
Description
An account of the resource
Before everybody in North Tonawanda could afford their very own muffler-less Honda Civic to run up and down Oliver Street, trolleys and trains were an important means of personal transportation. Several lines ran throughout the city, moving people to and from their jobs, churches, or just out for a look around.
Though they may seem romantic to us now, people griped about the trolleys the same way we complain about snow plows today. Apparently their slow speed was sometimes targeted: An item in this set describes a "well-known peddler" in the Gratwick area who is injured by a trolley car. The author drolly observes, "'Twould have been a real miracle if a Gratwick car could have got up enough speed to have killed him" (Tonawanda News, 1908-2-13).
The trolley era did not last long. By the 1920s, the electric streetcar had been passed by the gasoline-powered bus as the most prevalent means of public transportation. Another article in this set from the Tonawanda News, "Carpenter now operates 14 busses in the Tonawandas," outlines the rise of the Carpenter Rapid Transit buses.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Wurlitzer depot, photo, c1930.jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1930
bridge
station
trolley
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/5b1e1fbd5e72e4bbfa323767f7be2c56.jpg
309b291b7aacb2ee9e384e621c192b88
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Trolleys and Trains
Description
An account of the resource
Before everybody in North Tonawanda could afford their very own muffler-less Honda Civic to run up and down Oliver Street, trolleys and trains were an important means of personal transportation. Several lines ran throughout the city, moving people to and from their jobs, churches, or just out for a look around.
Though they may seem romantic to us now, people griped about the trolleys the same way we complain about snow plows today. Apparently their slow speed was sometimes targeted: An item in this set describes a "well-known peddler" in the Gratwick area who is injured by a trolley car. The author drolly observes, "'Twould have been a real miracle if a Gratwick car could have got up enough speed to have killed him" (Tonawanda News, 1908-2-13).
The trolley era did not last long. By the 1920s, the electric streetcar had been passed by the gasoline-powered bus as the most prevalent means of public transportation. Another article in this set from the Tonawanda News, "Carpenter now operates 14 busses in the Tonawandas," outlines the rise of the Carpenter Rapid Transit buses.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Martinsville Station, photo (c.1905).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1905
bridge
martinsville
station
train
trolley
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/7d07f0650ae1db0256a05f2399fd2b80.jpg
7d1067dfa1ed6bcba594f7d4a8338e32
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
New York Central Railroad Bascule Bridge (Erie Canal Museum, 1920-10-08).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920-10-08
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
https://cdm16694.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/srr_ecm/id/1892/rec/26
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/878893b7dfd24a63574ec557a62ca0bf.jpg
dfc9dfaa2c63799d9b7a80b47cab118c
https://nthistory.com/files/original/3e8a8590bc7d17b49774a2a4fef7510e.jpg
d0b23e0fbe2d568d6b03af3a85a7a0a2
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Downtown
Description
An account of the resource
Most of North Tonawanda's downtown area developed between 1875 and 1900. In this collection are preserved views of many vanished buildings: The YMCA and City Hall at the southeast corner of Tremont and Main; the 6-story 1891 Smith building (Real Estate Exchange) at the northeast corner of Tremont and Webster, the gothic stone State National Bank at the northwest corner of Sweeney and Webster, and Scanlon's Hall on the southwest corner of the same intersection, to name a few.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster Street, two views, photos (Erie Canal Museum, 1920-08-03).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920-08-03
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
https://cdm16694.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/srr_ecm/id/1874/rec/24
Description
An account of the resource
(first photo): Niagara Savings and Loan, White Star Hotel, Scanlon, State National Bank, Sweeney Building.
bridge
downtown
webster
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/ebad7b6842b1a7557752e26d303ad4ff.jpg
65bba3a24e68e9ab58b2ec28c581b7df
https://nthistory.com/files/original/225792fac830cf60c2431c718e5dbe66.jpg
aecd7407fff43f09f5f6f1d7bde89db4
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Lumber Business of the Tonawandas
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/48.jpg" alt="Map of the Lumber District of the Tonawandas, 1893" /><span class="cover-caption">In the heyday of the Tonawandas' lumber years, practically every available inch of the Niagara riverfront and Tonawanda Island is covered in lumber (shown as lettered, colored portions in the map above). <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/1848">1893 Sanborn Insurance map</a>.</span> In the mid-to-late 19th century, vast forests of Midwest timber are cut, dressed and shipped by water to the exploding towns and cities of the east, largely through the Tonawandas. The villages' advantageous location (between the Great Lakes and the Erie Canal) and the natural harbor afforded by Tonawanda Island make it one of the largest lumber ports in the country by 1890. A lock allows small craft to jump between the Niagara River and the Erie Canal via the non-canalized portion of Tonawanda Creek.<br /><br />Scores of lumber comanies spring up here, and their yards vaccum up almost every available inch of real estate along the Niagara River, Tonawanda Creek, and Tonawanda Island. Docks are built over the water, and millions of feet of lumber stored in great blocks are stacked to the sky. They are brought here largely on lake vessels from Lake Erie, where they are moved onto canal boats by lumbershovers and stevedores and hauled by canal boat captains (along with other goods) to points east.<br /><br />The big business means big money, and conflict between the laborers and employers sometimes turns deadly. Articles in this collection describe the lumbershovers strikes of 1892 and 1893, the first of which resulted in the death of a police officer, and both of which required the National Guard to be deployed. A separate collection, "<a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/136">Murder at the Docks</a>," digs into the 1895 double murder of canal boat captain Lorenzo Phillips and his son Charles as the captain attempted to haul a load of lumber from P. W. Scribner's Tonawanda dock in defiance of a boatmen's union agreement.<br /><br />As the forests of the midwest were depleted and shipping routes and technology changed, the lumber heyday of the Tonawandas receded into the past.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Birdseye View of the Twin Cities Harbor and Lumber District, postcard (c1910).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1910
bridge
lumber
tonawandaisland
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/fdfdb3d00e79f1f70538ff4036214475.jpg
b41d404eb2c9cc04f5357d556853189d
https://nthistory.com/files/original/7a1efebafc8cb6de290f807368b9cfa3.jpg
a8edab5962c5e6d6b2827857c21e62c4
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal, Sweeney Street on left, former Main Street bridge in center, hi-res photo (LOC, c 1905).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1905
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Library of Congress
Description
An account of the resource
Facing east along the Erie Canal, with Sweeney Street (at present-day Gateway Park) on the left bank. It would seem we are looking at three different bridges in this photo: The near bridge appears to be the "iron bridge" at the foot of NT's Main street depicted on an 1893 map. The same map shows a "covered bridge" at Oliver (where the "jack-knife" train bridge is today) and another "iron bridge" further east, at Vandervoort (there is no bridge there today).
Also pictured: Fire Engine House (at least on 1893 map) overhanging the canal, just before the first iron bridge; possible Stevens & McIntyre Wagon Shop beyond; "Merry Go Rounds" signage is visible beyond that.
bridge
canal
carriage
horse
towpath
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/ba0a4f489a3e8080d4d8fd1ecac2142a.jpg
42aaaba2579b3e74af17e736dc8982dc
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Swing Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
Apr 21 1883 "An act to incorporate the Tonawanda Island Bridge Company, for the purpose of constructing and operating a bridge from Tonawanda island to North Tonawanda [passed]" - <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=IYJZAAAAYAAJ">Gen Statutes of State of New York</a><br /><br />"March 2, 1885 - Petition was received from H. M. Dodge & Co., asking permission to construct and maintain a swing bridge across Tonawanda Harbor, landing in Erie County to be at or near foot of Clay Street" - Tonawanda News, 1941-11-07. According to a Tonawanda News article, the southern bridge hadn't been used since the 1940s, when the Continental Can company closed.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Swing bridge to Tonawanda Island, photo (c.1930).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1930
bridge
tonawandaisland
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/cf9d913973843db2e589bb726bb61782.jpg
60ac1ae346cbec9e6106b29a74410145
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster Street and Erie Canal Bridge, postcard (c1930).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1930
bridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/cba178df67c8ad36e968f0221d311c56.jpg
b4b6c7dd8dbcd85efdecc71257a74fdb
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Downtown
Description
An account of the resource
Most of North Tonawanda's downtown area developed between 1875 and 1900. In this collection are preserved views of many vanished buildings: The YMCA and City Hall at the southeast corner of Tremont and Main; the 6-story 1891 Smith building (Real Estate Exchange) at the northeast corner of Tremont and Webster, the gothic stone State National Bank at the northwest corner of Sweeney and Webster, and Scanlon's Hall on the southwest corner of the same intersection, to name a few.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster and Bridge, split, postcard (1948).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1948
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/7d2234dfb9156f707ce8fc1f17d4bd7e.jpg
0ad0ee4339e7040c72784fda20216335
https://nthistory.com/files/original/f32475e9bbe7dcb083e3ee45088471cf.jpg
3603f2945ce455183c5557d909014dac
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bridge over Erie Barge Canal dividing Tonawandas, postcard (c1920).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/22d165a63dfa525839cab0131435488b.jpg
60f5f7402e286a94f4b66bbd9e987144
https://nthistory.com/files/original/e0d0b437eac1ec293f57f32e6b1f5924.jpg
3cee29bf8151f199ddd5c45d2ddd3843
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bridge over Erie Barge Canal connecting, postcard (1960).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1960
bridge
canal
downtown
webster
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/fb35c1eabac3aa7ef5abaae0b9513d87.jpg
0ad0ee4339e7040c72784fda20216335
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bridge over Erie Barge Canal, postcard (c.1930).jpg
Description
An account of the resource
Showing First Trust, Tonawanda Power Co., more.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1930
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/0cd792f62c5ba72bc999a269fa57ca15.jpg
a657660c776336eb8ba0b2ab8a23afd8
https://nthistory.com/files/original/2523e0bd0bf30f709886a366f9741638.jpg
c6e35815bcb4d12801bc8043941fcaa4
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Martinsville
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="../../../custom/cover/56.jpg" alt="Postcard view looking north up Old Falld Blvd" /><span class="cover-caption">Old Falls Boulevard, looking north from Lockport Ave. to Niagara Falls Blvd. Postcard detail, c.1900.</span> The northeast part of North Tonawanda known as "Martinsville" is named after the father of the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther. It is settled by German Lutheran farmers, beginning around 1843. They settled in narrow farms along the west bank of Tonawanda Creek. As the area developed, a "downtown" emerged along William Street, present-day Old Falls Blvd, near Lockport Rd. (pictured above). The village boasted its own post office, stores and places of entertainment. <br /><br />Most of Martinsville was incorporated into the then-booming City of North Tonawanda in 1897. The sections of Martinsville east of present-day Old Falls and Niagara Falls boulevards are considered part of Wheatfield.<br /><br />The real estate transaction that brought many of the settlers to the area, its early growth, and the contentious religious devotion of its people are described in <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/606"><em>History of Niagara County 1821-1878</em></a>:
<blockquote>In 1843 Carl Sack, Erdman Wurl and Fred Grosskopf purchased of William Vandervoote 400 acres, at $15 per acre, on the Tonawanda creek, in the southeast corner of the town, four miles east of Tonawanda village, in what is now known as the village of Martinsville. Lutheran religious antecedents caused the adoption of this name by the disciples of Martin Luther. The original purchase was divided into small lots of three acres and up- ward, as others were able to purchase, to provide for the location of thirty families the first season. They erected ten log houses in the autumn, each of which was occupied by three or four families during the winter and until joint efforts relieved the immigrants by building others. The families remained in Buffalo until the first houses were built, obtaining the best accommodations they could find. Forbidding as the prospect in the beginning must have been, it has been changed to the appearance of prosperity. The church organization is the controlling element in the government of the community, now consisting of one hundred families, connected with the two now existing, the result of divided feeling, but not an abandonment of the Lutheran faith.</blockquote>
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal looking South, Martinsville, Buschs Bridge, photo (1914).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1914
bridge
canal
martinsville
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/3bf5a6c5444a3a01f426649319ad6b96.jpg
b56637725444755d33d22edee3f55950
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Downtown
Description
An account of the resource
Most of North Tonawanda's downtown area developed between 1875 and 1900. In this collection are preserved views of many vanished buildings: The YMCA and City Hall at the southeast corner of Tremont and Main; the 6-story 1891 Smith building (Real Estate Exchange) at the northeast corner of Tremont and Webster, the gothic stone State National Bank at the northwest corner of Sweeney and Webster, and Scanlon's Hall on the southwest corner of the same intersection, to name a few.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster Street, Bridge over Canal, postcard (c1940).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940
bridge
canal
webster
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/b118aa3c277078e58455b56b02bbb8cf.jpg
8ceadc5e02e71227127507f4f94aa194
https://nthistory.com/files/original/f2052b4426ed378ec7cf11ea39f95295.jpeg
7149b2bfda60f49f1e9e8565d09c4e48
https://nthistory.com/files/original/beefdfa23e19379d2f818e6b2b23bb29.jpeg
3cca6b04ec8640e25364bb4adac29e7f
https://nthistory.com/files/original/2a3c47977a86942a34d1d13758183d69.jpeg
40419a240c2eebd017c487cfe590ae2f
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Lumber Business of the Tonawandas
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/48.jpg" alt="Map of the Lumber District of the Tonawandas, 1893" /><span class="cover-caption">In the heyday of the Tonawandas' lumber years, practically every available inch of the Niagara riverfront and Tonawanda Island is covered in lumber (shown as lettered, colored portions in the map above). <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/1848">1893 Sanborn Insurance map</a>.</span> In the mid-to-late 19th century, vast forests of Midwest timber are cut, dressed and shipped by water to the exploding towns and cities of the east, largely through the Tonawandas. The villages' advantageous location (between the Great Lakes and the Erie Canal) and the natural harbor afforded by Tonawanda Island make it one of the largest lumber ports in the country by 1890. A lock allows small craft to jump between the Niagara River and the Erie Canal via the non-canalized portion of Tonawanda Creek.<br /><br />Scores of lumber comanies spring up here, and their yards vaccum up almost every available inch of real estate along the Niagara River, Tonawanda Creek, and Tonawanda Island. Docks are built over the water, and millions of feet of lumber stored in great blocks are stacked to the sky. They are brought here largely on lake vessels from Lake Erie, where they are moved onto canal boats by lumbershovers and stevedores and hauled by canal boat captains (along with other goods) to points east.<br /><br />The big business means big money, and conflict between the laborers and employers sometimes turns deadly. Articles in this collection describe the lumbershovers strikes of 1892 and 1893, the first of which resulted in the death of a police officer, and both of which required the National Guard to be deployed. A separate collection, "<a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/136">Murder at the Docks</a>," digs into the 1895 double murder of canal boat captain Lorenzo Phillips and his son Charles as the captain attempted to haul a load of lumber from P. W. Scribner's Tonawanda dock in defiance of a boatmen's union agreement.<br /><br />As the forests of the midwest were depleted and shipping routes and technology changed, the lumber heyday of the Tonawandas receded into the past.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Lumber District, postcard (1919).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1919
Description
An account of the resource
A view from the southern portion of a lumber-bedecked Tonawanda Island across the "Little (Niagara) River" onto a lumber-bedecked North Tonawanda.
boat
bridge
collection
lumber
river
swingbridge
tonawandaisland
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/be5fecefd4fe5f933f1d42b29bc63ae4.jpg
4ffca5c2eb3c7244507239de1725421f
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Swing Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
Apr 21 1883 "An act to incorporate the Tonawanda Island Bridge Company, for the purpose of constructing and operating a bridge from Tonawanda island to North Tonawanda [passed]" - <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=IYJZAAAAYAAJ">Gen Statutes of State of New York</a><br /><br />"March 2, 1885 - Petition was received from H. M. Dodge & Co., asking permission to construct and maintain a swing bridge across Tonawanda Harbor, landing in Erie County to be at or near foot of Clay Street" - Tonawanda News, 1941-11-07. According to a Tonawanda News article, the southern bridge hadn't been used since the 1940s, when the Continental Can company closed.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Swing bridge with train, photo from article (Tonawanda News, 1961-02-08).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1961-02-08
bridge
tonawandaisland
train
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/cd20abb8fe24de2761541ef5c8159441.jpg
359f378624ba183a124e38ccc1ed5e11
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Swing Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
Apr 21 1883 "An act to incorporate the Tonawanda Island Bridge Company, for the purpose of constructing and operating a bridge from Tonawanda island to North Tonawanda [passed]" - <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=IYJZAAAAYAAJ">Gen Statutes of State of New York</a><br /><br />"March 2, 1885 - Petition was received from H. M. Dodge & Co., asking permission to construct and maintain a swing bridge across Tonawanda Harbor, landing in Erie County to be at or near foot of Clay Street" - Tonawanda News, 1941-11-07. According to a Tonawanda News article, the southern bridge hadn't been used since the 1940s, when the Continental Can company closed.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
No More Swinging, swing bridge controls, photo (Tonawanda News, 1972-05-05).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1972-05-05
bridge
tonawandaisland
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/6174342d8671ffe98b05e317db089d0c.jpg
465c5e04ee6344c671c3747428f60353
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Swing Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
Apr 21 1883 "An act to incorporate the Tonawanda Island Bridge Company, for the purpose of constructing and operating a bridge from Tonawanda island to North Tonawanda [passed]" - <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=IYJZAAAAYAAJ">Gen Statutes of State of New York</a><br /><br />"March 2, 1885 - Petition was received from H. M. Dodge & Co., asking permission to construct and maintain a swing bridge across Tonawanda Harbor, landing in Erie County to be at or near foot of Clay Street" - Tonawanda News, 1941-11-07. According to a Tonawanda News article, the southern bridge hadn't been used since the 1940s, when the Continental Can company closed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Landmark Bridge Removal Is Slated, photo article (Tonawanda News, 1973-07-19).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1973-07-19
bridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/79935116f47faf6800c2e254f7243e5e.jpg
52106df2bb171b0b8281c8ba5c2234db
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Swing Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
Apr 21 1883 "An act to incorporate the Tonawanda Island Bridge Company, for the purpose of constructing and operating a bridge from Tonawanda island to North Tonawanda [passed]" - <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=IYJZAAAAYAAJ">Gen Statutes of State of New York</a><br /><br />"March 2, 1885 - Petition was received from H. M. Dodge & Co., asking permission to construct and maintain a swing bridge across Tonawanda Harbor, landing in Erie County to be at or near foot of Clay Street" - Tonawanda News, 1941-11-07. According to a Tonawanda News article, the southern bridge hadn't been used since the 1940s, when the Continental Can company closed.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Big Jump, Big Splash, photo (Tonawanda News, 1971-06-24).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1971-06-24
bridge
recreation
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/b0c4a2d5f7510eeb6b17ed331037d9a6.jpg
6435890017cfe991241bf439918b2876
https://nthistory.com/files/original/4ba05d29545073c72447fed0eb21eb0d.jpg
123252dba93b0aa25e8096a55b424afb
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Barge Canal, postcard (c1960).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1960
bridge
canal
creek
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/9a02dafe36c68e16b5f3113be797536f.jpg
888696bd9493f7e3bcda177389490c38
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Delaware street bridge 2 (c1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/bf26e20b6eda00fc3d2e231728bac720.jpg
ef176c55766f6a5aba6740a22531388f
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Delaware street bridge, maybe Elks Club (c1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/549ca49c3c2c541f9740b89f94fc00bf.jpg
9c73d711cbd528105a5160d2213bfbae
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Delaware street bridge (c1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/53f9bec7f483151a1639a0640acc8644.jpg
356da93ea1914892cd2b2b5f43a932e1
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge with miscreants about (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/172378b69459bfe61bd00b2058f77a89.jpg
c28e7f831f42c680f3ca0fa3d3bcf90e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge watch tower in winter (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/a12b50fdcc35f47d8b7f302e0c7952b6.jpg
ad13c4f2b3ab5b61190e1ba59e038a22
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge demolition, open with (hopefully) workers atop, hi-res photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/a471af3065f7bd3cad6ee3ec6d6e579f.jpg
228cba1f9a2ab6b9e3f74dfb8edaee6e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge open, Marine Midland clock, hi-res photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/72bb838f0ee15717b67925e353461666.jpg
76b543056acf6bd4ad151a93dae85b31
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge in winter, Niagara First Savings (c1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/f263c7c457decdaadb324df2e013b826.jpg
61130f9ed283333cfb67b7281013dd49
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge from Tonawanda (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/4f41e8b3bbc34bc46e23d17a0d20004d.jpg
91db55b21ae28c872a0667d3e20fa14c
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge demolition, hi-res photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/a08fb29fae77d61832cd28afbd0afb38.jpg
f24e7aa593934086eecaaea25ebe41c3
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge demolition, photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/45bdc76b1c660f5d9cfb8afd0646fe4b.jpg
2083710e6566a7c38adf25ad31ab1031
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge demolition, Main street approach, hi-res photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/77fd26b55d3060092039239028eddb5d.jpg
584fa35ac2ca767895a0f89f4fd26b40
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge demolition, hi-res photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/44c91b378b7ab73de2971a4338bc793d.jpg
5d75044574b611b7300dec52f7aeef09
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge demolition, hi-res photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/57e482b96689cd6d34cfe887fd495c51.jpg
9b24ee69cb5136dfee2aa92a455c7346
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge across the Erie Canal in winter (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/52a3be7fed8a493653ff11adf4738878.jpg
f39ed3d692bcb91acf83848ebb835c33
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge, North Tonawanda side (c1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/6dcd45e2b3b27ee1e8de06074db50389.jpg
826e960d864c6e5bc20c342232634a0b
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Bascule bridge, Bethlehem Steel Bridge Co. plate, photo (1978).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1978
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/0c765b4176fb0fd6c1339770e2006b8c.jpg
d1171ded2f64512986438250c5990ca0
https://nthistory.com/files/original/e67a5c1105c6634fbc5efa8bbadc0b40.jpg
123252dba93b0aa25e8096a55b424afb
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Webster to Main Street Bridges
Description
An account of the resource
(?-1916): Long bridge (1918-1978) A "Bascule" bridge (which could open to allow masted boats to pass) once connected Webster Street in North Tonawanda to Main Street in Tonawanda. It replaced the "Long Bridge," and was part of the enlargement of the Erie Canal to the Erie Barge Canal. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. This collection features photos of the bridge in its heyday, as well as a black-and-white series depicting its 1978 demolition, and the rerouting of the Main and Young street approaches.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
View of Barge Canal, Bascule bridge, Tonawanda Board and Paper co., postcard (c1960).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1960
boat
bridge
canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/efb14870a03b8078ed89fb4fece3bb7f.jpg
e99dc9595d746cc4b457452ded6aa68e
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Ellicott Park and bridge, photo (c1980).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1980
boat
bridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/829ad5a6d146fb2a5aa4c63243b3dc9c.jpg
58d991e7765d3962f7b7e5e92b8c5011
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Railroad Bridge over canal at Vandervoort
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Bridge at Vandervoort carried Erie Railroad trains, electric streetcars--and apparently courageous pedestrians across the Tonawanda Creek and Erie Canal.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Bridge, Tonawanda, postcard (1916).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1916
Description
An account of the resource
This bridge no longer exists; it carried the former Erie RR across Tonawanda Creek at the foot of Vandervoort Street. Heading northwest, the railroad line continued to just east of the present-day Railroad Museum, along East Oliver Street, and across Oliver Street.
bridge
railroad
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/90f6f12eb3271812f61d840a7e6b67bb.png
24484a73119e82dfde0f434cb4567959
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Downtown
Description
An account of the resource
Most of North Tonawanda's downtown area developed between 1875 and 1900. In this collection are preserved views of many vanished buildings: The YMCA and City Hall at the southeast corner of Tremont and Main; the 6-story 1891 Smith building (Real Estate Exchange) at the northeast corner of Tremont and Webster, the gothic stone State National Bank at the northwest corner of Sweeney and Webster, and Scanlon's Hall on the southwest corner of the same intersection, to name a few.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Tonawandas Newest Civic Center, photos and article (Ton News 1924).png
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1924
Description
An account of the resource
Abandonment of Erie Canal from Ellicott Creek, removal of train tracks from Webster in NT and Main in Tonawanda, automobiles. Also view of Van Raalte Silk Mill, First Trust bank, Sweeney Building.
bridge
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/ecdccf768f590ea5900ecdd52732fc6d.jpg
4ee3616b9fb2c8ab31879f38706c5ae2
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Lumber Business of the Tonawandas
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/48.jpg" alt="Map of the Lumber District of the Tonawandas, 1893" /><span class="cover-caption">In the heyday of the Tonawandas' lumber years, practically every available inch of the Niagara riverfront and Tonawanda Island is covered in lumber (shown as lettered, colored portions in the map above). <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/1848">1893 Sanborn Insurance map</a>.</span> In the mid-to-late 19th century, vast forests of Midwest timber are cut, dressed and shipped by water to the exploding towns and cities of the east, largely through the Tonawandas. The villages' advantageous location (between the Great Lakes and the Erie Canal) and the natural harbor afforded by Tonawanda Island make it one of the largest lumber ports in the country by 1890. A lock allows small craft to jump between the Niagara River and the Erie Canal via the non-canalized portion of Tonawanda Creek.<br /><br />Scores of lumber comanies spring up here, and their yards vaccum up almost every available inch of real estate along the Niagara River, Tonawanda Creek, and Tonawanda Island. Docks are built over the water, and millions of feet of lumber stored in great blocks are stacked to the sky. They are brought here largely on lake vessels from Lake Erie, where they are moved onto canal boats by lumbershovers and stevedores and hauled by canal boat captains (along with other goods) to points east.<br /><br />The big business means big money, and conflict between the laborers and employers sometimes turns deadly. Articles in this collection describe the lumbershovers strikes of 1892 and 1893, the first of which resulted in the death of a police officer, and both of which required the National Guard to be deployed. A separate collection, "<a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/136">Murder at the Docks</a>," digs into the 1895 double murder of canal boat captain Lorenzo Phillips and his son Charles as the captain attempted to haul a load of lumber from P. W. Scribner's Tonawanda dock in defiance of a boatmen's union agreement.<br /><br />As the forests of the midwest were depleted and shipping routes and technology changed, the lumber heyday of the Tonawandas receded into the past.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Harbor Scene, postcard (c1900).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1900
boat
bridge
lumber
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/90fe501fe62479c4b18d366ddcf49ba5.jpg
9e1bbe27e137743e376119390f6e5d76
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Lumber Business of the Tonawandas
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/48.jpg" alt="Map of the Lumber District of the Tonawandas, 1893" /><span class="cover-caption">In the heyday of the Tonawandas' lumber years, practically every available inch of the Niagara riverfront and Tonawanda Island is covered in lumber (shown as lettered, colored portions in the map above). <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/1848">1893 Sanborn Insurance map</a>.</span> In the mid-to-late 19th century, vast forests of Midwest timber are cut, dressed and shipped by water to the exploding towns and cities of the east, largely through the Tonawandas. The villages' advantageous location (between the Great Lakes and the Erie Canal) and the natural harbor afforded by Tonawanda Island make it one of the largest lumber ports in the country by 1890. A lock allows small craft to jump between the Niagara River and the Erie Canal via the non-canalized portion of Tonawanda Creek.<br /><br />Scores of lumber comanies spring up here, and their yards vaccum up almost every available inch of real estate along the Niagara River, Tonawanda Creek, and Tonawanda Island. Docks are built over the water, and millions of feet of lumber stored in great blocks are stacked to the sky. They are brought here largely on lake vessels from Lake Erie, where they are moved onto canal boats by lumbershovers and stevedores and hauled by canal boat captains (along with other goods) to points east.<br /><br />The big business means big money, and conflict between the laborers and employers sometimes turns deadly. Articles in this collection describe the lumbershovers strikes of 1892 and 1893, the first of which resulted in the death of a police officer, and both of which required the National Guard to be deployed. A separate collection, "<a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/136">Murder at the Docks</a>," digs into the 1895 double murder of canal boat captain Lorenzo Phillips and his son Charles as the captain attempted to haul a load of lumber from P. W. Scribner's Tonawanda dock in defiance of a boatmen's union agreement.<br /><br />As the forests of the midwest were depleted and shipping routes and technology changed, the lumber heyday of the Tonawandas receded into the past.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Harbor Scene, postcard (1906).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1906
boat
bridge
lumber
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/e65dd63fcc32ad4b966cbfdb521de998.jpg
089bc255d6e66b68c2f47c1efc9fd4b5
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Goose Island (Tonawanda)
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/26.jpg" alt="Goose Island as seen from Tonawanda Island, postcard detail, ca 1913" /><span class="cover-caption">Goose Island as seen from Tonawanda Island, postcard detail, ca 1913.</span> In the mid-nineteenth century, Tonawanda's so-called "Goose Island" has a reputation as the part of town a fatigued, sober and lovelorn "canawler" can go to be cured of at least two of those conditions. Even decades after the Canal era, the area continues to proffer its roguish entertainments. In the mid-1930s, during Prohibition, local law enforcement organizes a series of "vice raids" on its bordellos and taverns, citing widespread lawlessness (the language in the articles is delicately vague, but offenses seem to include the venerable tandem of whoring and drinking). <br /><br />"Goose Island" wasn't a real island: it was a triangular hunk of land in Tonawanda bordered by the Erie Canal, the Niagara River and Tonawanda Creek, in the area where Tops and Rivershore Drive are today (see this <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/331">map</a>). The city waterworks, factories, trains, taverns and homes all mingled here in a pre-zoning law stew. <br /><br />The Historical Society of the Tonawandas <a href="http://www.niagaragreenway.org/sites/default/files/Historical%20Society%20of%20the%20Tonawandas%20NRG%20-%20November%202013%20SQ.pdf">reports</a> (p. 18) that the island also hosted Gillie's merry-go-round company, Louis Philip Perew's curious <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/611">Electric Man</a>, and the Bork Hotel. (Perew and his son also owned many of the "entertainment" places).<br /><br />The island is at last taken by the forces of good. The canal from Tonawanda to Buffalo is filled in around 1927, effectively reconnecting the recalcitrant island to its parent. Later, "Urban Renewal" razes all its remaining structures but the waterworks. Today the former "island" is quietly and profitably inhabited by a small plaza, a <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/942">nightmarish housing project</a>, Tops Friendly Markets and, perhaps most resonantly, the headquarters of the Tonawanda Police Department.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Harbor, Goose Island, postcard (1913).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1913
boat
bridge
horse
labor
lumber
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/1e735f5cb8ca4206c6bdad938f9f7ac7.png
eb02b03709e0ab9e2cb25f357f06d877
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Lumber Business of the Tonawandas
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/48.jpg" alt="Map of the Lumber District of the Tonawandas, 1893" /><span class="cover-caption">In the heyday of the Tonawandas' lumber years, practically every available inch of the Niagara riverfront and Tonawanda Island is covered in lumber (shown as lettered, colored portions in the map above). <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/1848">1893 Sanborn Insurance map</a>.</span> In the mid-to-late 19th century, vast forests of Midwest timber are cut, dressed and shipped by water to the exploding towns and cities of the east, largely through the Tonawandas. The villages' advantageous location (between the Great Lakes and the Erie Canal) and the natural harbor afforded by Tonawanda Island make it one of the largest lumber ports in the country by 1890. A lock allows small craft to jump between the Niagara River and the Erie Canal via the non-canalized portion of Tonawanda Creek.<br /><br />Scores of lumber comanies spring up here, and their yards vaccum up almost every available inch of real estate along the Niagara River, Tonawanda Creek, and Tonawanda Island. Docks are built over the water, and millions of feet of lumber stored in great blocks are stacked to the sky. They are brought here largely on lake vessels from Lake Erie, where they are moved onto canal boats by lumbershovers and stevedores and hauled by canal boat captains (along with other goods) to points east.<br /><br />The big business means big money, and conflict between the laborers and employers sometimes turns deadly. Articles in this collection describe the lumbershovers strikes of 1892 and 1893, the first of which resulted in the death of a police officer, and both of which required the National Guard to be deployed. A separate collection, "<a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/136">Murder at the Docks</a>," digs into the 1895 double murder of canal boat captain Lorenzo Phillips and his son Charles as the captain attempted to haul a load of lumber from P. W. Scribner's Tonawanda dock in defiance of a boatmen's union agreement.<br /><br />As the forests of the midwest were depleted and shipping routes and technology changed, the lumber heyday of the Tonawandas receded into the past.
Letters and Letterhead
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Title
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Eastern Lumber Company letterhead, detail (1899).png
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1899
boat
bridge
lumber
-
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09310af8977f88115e74905448be26c8
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Title
A name given to the resource
Lumber Business of the Tonawandas
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/48.jpg" alt="Map of the Lumber District of the Tonawandas, 1893" /><span class="cover-caption">In the heyday of the Tonawandas' lumber years, practically every available inch of the Niagara riverfront and Tonawanda Island is covered in lumber (shown as lettered, colored portions in the map above). <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/1848">1893 Sanborn Insurance map</a>.</span> In the mid-to-late 19th century, vast forests of Midwest timber are cut, dressed and shipped by water to the exploding towns and cities of the east, largely through the Tonawandas. The villages' advantageous location (between the Great Lakes and the Erie Canal) and the natural harbor afforded by Tonawanda Island make it one of the largest lumber ports in the country by 1890. A lock allows small craft to jump between the Niagara River and the Erie Canal via the non-canalized portion of Tonawanda Creek.<br /><br />Scores of lumber comanies spring up here, and their yards vaccum up almost every available inch of real estate along the Niagara River, Tonawanda Creek, and Tonawanda Island. Docks are built over the water, and millions of feet of lumber stored in great blocks are stacked to the sky. They are brought here largely on lake vessels from Lake Erie, where they are moved onto canal boats by lumbershovers and stevedores and hauled by canal boat captains (along with other goods) to points east.<br /><br />The big business means big money, and conflict between the laborers and employers sometimes turns deadly. Articles in this collection describe the lumbershovers strikes of 1892 and 1893, the first of which resulted in the death of a police officer, and both of which required the National Guard to be deployed. A separate collection, "<a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/136">Murder at the Docks</a>," digs into the 1895 double murder of canal boat captain Lorenzo Phillips and his son Charles as the captain attempted to haul a load of lumber from P. W. Scribner's Tonawanda dock in defiance of a boatmen's union agreement.<br /><br />As the forests of the midwest were depleted and shipping routes and technology changed, the lumber heyday of the Tonawandas receded into the past.
Letters and Letterhead
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Eastern Lumber Company, letterhead (1899).png
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1899
boat
bridge
lumber
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/3050418546c1a4d2ad2789e53cca3936.jpg
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https://nthistory.com/files/original/d2e77cb0e23fbf9d790fd3de7db3b761.jpg
856a9b8e556068057bc6ee7eedd41465
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Title
A name given to the resource
Goose Island (Tonawanda)
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/26.jpg" alt="Goose Island as seen from Tonawanda Island, postcard detail, ca 1913" /><span class="cover-caption">Goose Island as seen from Tonawanda Island, postcard detail, ca 1913.</span> In the mid-nineteenth century, Tonawanda's so-called "Goose Island" has a reputation as the part of town a fatigued, sober and lovelorn "canawler" can go to be cured of at least two of those conditions. Even decades after the Canal era, the area continues to proffer its roguish entertainments. In the mid-1930s, during Prohibition, local law enforcement organizes a series of "vice raids" on its bordellos and taverns, citing widespread lawlessness (the language in the articles is delicately vague, but offenses seem to include the venerable tandem of whoring and drinking). <br /><br />"Goose Island" wasn't a real island: it was a triangular hunk of land in Tonawanda bordered by the Erie Canal, the Niagara River and Tonawanda Creek, in the area where Tops and Rivershore Drive are today (see this <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/331">map</a>). The city waterworks, factories, trains, taverns and homes all mingled here in a pre-zoning law stew. <br /><br />The Historical Society of the Tonawandas <a href="http://www.niagaragreenway.org/sites/default/files/Historical%20Society%20of%20the%20Tonawandas%20NRG%20-%20November%202013%20SQ.pdf">reports</a> (p. 18) that the island also hosted Gillie's merry-go-round company, Louis Philip Perew's curious <a href="http://nthistory.com/items/show/611">Electric Man</a>, and the Bork Hotel. (Perew and his son also owned many of the "entertainment" places).<br /><br />The island is at last taken by the forces of good. The canal from Tonawanda to Buffalo is filled in around 1927, effectively reconnecting the recalcitrant island to its parent. Later, "Urban Renewal" razes all its remaining structures but the waterworks. Today the former "island" is quietly and profitably inhabited by a small plaza, a <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/942">nightmarish housing project</a>, Tops Friendly Markets and, perhaps most resonantly, the headquarters of the Tonawanda Police Department.
Postcard
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Birds-eye view of some of the dockage, postcard (1908).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1908
Description
An account of the resource
Manhattan Street is in the foreground. Just beyond is some of that famous lumber (Dodge & Bliss and J. W Scribner are two firms who stacked it here), and the swing bridge connecting to North Tonawanda to Tonawanda's "Goose Island." The little buildings at mid-left appear to be the <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/993">bordellos and saloons</a> that lined Tonawanda Street; the larger structures to the right are the Tonawanda Board and Paper Co.; on the far right of the postcard is the southern tip of Tonawanda Island.
boat
bridge
gooseisland
lumber
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/bb56b1ab5145f7689b67b960d9fbee80.jpg
d98d976c608bc094ba02076f210b28d9
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A name given to the resource
Tonawanda Power Company (435 Robinson)
Description
An account of the resource
<img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/37.jpg" alt="National Grid transformer station in 2023. Photo by Dennis Reed Jr." /> <span class="cover-caption">National Grid transformer station in 2023. Photo by Dennis Reed Jr.</span><strong>First located on Tonawanda Island</strong><br /><br />Around 1889, what would be come the Tonawanda Power Company (Tonawanda & Wheatfield Electric Light company) supplied electricity to NT from a small steam unit on Tonawanda Island, fed by wood shavings from the Doebler Planing Mill. Their office was at the northeast corner of Main and Goundry in an old frame building. Arc lights on a few streets were run. A few "daring" homes and businesses ran its power.<br /><br /><strong>Electrifying Buffalo-Niagara</strong><br /><br />In late 1895, The Niagara Falls Power Company builds a long-distance power line (mostly along the Old Mile Reserve) from Niagara Falls to Buffalo, the first of its kind in the world. It is operational by November 1896.<br /><br />The long distance line uses Nikolai Tesla's breakthrough alternating current (AC) transmitted at high voltages, which could travel with minimal loss. A ‘transformer house’ like the one established on Robinson street would step down (transform) some of the high voltage lines to more manageable and safer levels for local distribution. Other lines passing through this North Tonawanda substation continued at high voltage to Buffalo and Lockport, to be stepped down at other transformer houses before being used locally. Much of the line followed a right of way established by the old New York State Mile Reserve, a mile east of the Niagara River.<br /><br /><strong>Former switching tower<br /><br /></strong>Where the new park is now, on the Twin City Highway side, was once a two-story “switching tower” connected to the transformer house. Added around 1902, this tower was actually owned by the Niagara Falls Power company. It helped engineers manage and troubleshoot defects in the multiplying lines. Most of the high voltage lines carrying electricity from the massive turbines at Niagara Falls ran into this tower. <br /><br /><strong>Halloween disaster</strong><br /><br />In 1920, a horrific explosion kills 13 men early Halloween morning. An NT fire chief <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Safety_Maintenance_Production/Njw6AQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Superintendent+Albert+S.+Allen+tonawanda&pg=PA221&printsec=frontcover">alleges the work was rushed</a> in <em>Safety News and Comment</em>. The January 1921 <em>Safety Bulletin</em> <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Safety_Bulletin/XwkUAAAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=tonawanda+power+substation+tower&pg=RA24-PA2&printsec=frontcover">provides more context and details</a> (a storm and wind outside) and a photo of the ruined second floor of the switching tower. <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/State_of_New_York_Supreme_Court_Appellat/-NBRpQpR-lwC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=tonawanda+power+substation+tower&pg=RA3-PA17&printsec=frontcover">Rose Derby's suit</a>. Superintendent Frank S. Wahl's (and others!) testimony in <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/New_York_Court_of_Appeals_Records_and_Br/wU3z2XtqKz8C?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=tonawanda+power+substation+tower&pg=PA178&printsec=frontcover">Yates's survivor's suit provides</a> more tower details, tower role, and what he saw on the scene (where the dead were found).<br /><br />In 1925 they become "associated with" Buffalo General Electric, Niagara Falls Power Co. and others. <br /><br />In 1929, they open a new headquarters on Sweeney and Webster, today Buffalo Suzuki Strings.<br /><br />The Robinson street transformer house and environs is now owned and operated by National Grid.
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Title
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Niagara Mohawk, illustrated ad (1958).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1958
bridge
electricity
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/aa7330d5791b47027c669a0df3be6c9c.jpg
c02b5705ee5d2b532a4a6e8d286cdc8a
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Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
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South Niagara Street Showing Erie Canal, Tonawanda, postcard (c1900).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1900-02
boat
bridge
canal
tonawanda
-
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a1f606196a2ae9dcb04ce1867b508b8c
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The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
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Erie Canal and South Niagara Street, postcard (c1910).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1910
bridge
canal
erie-canal
tonawanda
towpath
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/c5d3e1dade0964919f5a65f0072b0246.JPG
25316b4f32697fb77972146d408fd9a7
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Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
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Bridges over Erie Canal, postcard (c1950).JPG
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1950
Description
An account of the resource
Bascule bridge in the distance.
bridge
canal
erie-canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/f8dd4dd51cb3d9e52fac2d17c9881096.jpg
d56cd901ab6c0be004b2b7a5926f165b
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Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Postcard
A pictorial representation of a place or entity, intended to be written upon and mailed.
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Bridge over Erie Barge Canal dividing Tonawandas, postcard (c1925).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1925
Description
An account of the resource
First National Bank, Tonawanda Power Co. also pictured.
bridge
canal
erie-canal
-
https://nthistory.com/files/original/49ce30445fb2149d44e522e5c49a25c4.jpg
ad6cf28d685bcafb85e4af923b7c4932
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Erie Canal
Description
An account of the resource
The Erie Canal in North Tonawanda followed the existing Tonawanda Creek from Pendleton. The first work done locally was the 1823 construction of a wooden dam near present-day Gateway Park to raise the level of the creek four feet. In 1918 this dam was removed when the length of the Erie was re-engineered to become the Erie Barge Canal. The Tonawanda and Buffalo portions of the canal were abandoned at that time, making North Tonawanda the canal's new western terminus. In 1923 Tonawanda began filling in the old canal. The work was not yet complete in 1929.
Photo
A photographic depiction of a person or place.
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Barge Canal Terminal at North Tonawanda, photo (1916).jpg
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1916
boat
bridge
canal
erie-canal