1 200 19 https://nthistory.com/files/original/0cdaf0875e0065f6986d1c8f4455081d.jpg fbbc6a7c0dcad381801b4ce8f791d32c https://nthistory.com/files/original/1709267bdd3f0e4a18dec6a3a5e581c9.png 29c02966b4b3e2cb9fbb3a0a75f94063 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 Smith Real Estate Exchange Building (1892-1938) Description An account of the resource <img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/156.jpg" alt="The six-story Smith Building, c. 1936." /> The six-story Smith Building, c. 1936.At six stories, the towering Smith Real Estate Exchange building at the northeast corner of Webster and Tremont Streets was once the tallest building in the Tonawandas. It afforded <a href="https://nthistory.com/items/show/933">magnificent views</a> of the exploding young city. Brief history from Tonawanda News, February 19, 1938: <blockquote>The building was erected in 1892 [another source states finished in 1896] by George P. Smith and was known as the Smith building for a number of years. When the Riviera theater and other new buildings were erected in the block, bounded by Tremont, Webster and Main streets the Smith Building was taken over by the present owners and subsequently converted into small apartments. Originally the building had ten apartments and offices on the Webster street side of the building with the exception of the first floor, which was occupied by stores and other business places. There are approximately 30 apartments in the present building.</blockquote> <a href="https://nthistory.com/items/show/4866">George Perry Smith</a> As the son of H. R. Smith and Christiana Long Smith (of Christiana Street fame), George P. Smith hails from impeccable Tonawandas pioneer stock. Smith is heavily involved in lumber and real estate (he is president of the Ironton Land Co. and involved with the North Tonawanda Land Co.,) and also rises to leadership in several local utility and transportation companies, operating "Smith's" streetcar line.  A fire in Smith's building is described in the Niagara Sun, January 21st, 1898: <blockquote>It is believed the fire started in George P. Smith’s office in the south-west corner on the fifth floor. Large holes were burned through the ceiling, floor and walks. The flames climbed to the sixth floor and entered the offices of Barrall & Snowy, city engineers, where many valuable maps and records were stored. Quite a number of new maps were ruined and others badly damaged, among them being the maps of North Tonawanda and Wheatfield which were completed about two months ago after nearly a year’s work.</blockquote> Plaza Apartments The Smith building is later (1930) known as  as the Plaza Apartments at 89 Webster Street. It burns again on February 18, 1938. Owner Max Yellen of Buffalo considers razing just the top three floors, then decides to raze it all, having lost thousands of dollars on the building annually. It is taken down a few months later. 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 The Smith Building, former Real Estate Exchange, photo (c.1936).jpg Description An account of the resource Smith Dining Car also pictured. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1936 photo webster https://nthistory.com/files/original/23f1bc11804f87b737f259b1da87cf38.jpg 6b432d263b53002bd58eb30535df4682 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" />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>. 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. 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. 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. As the forests of the midwest were depleted and shipping routes and technology changed, the lumber heyday of the Tonawandas receded into the past. 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 R. T. Jones Lumber Co., photo (c.1938).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1938 photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/92033a81780e833490e6e7d646bbac9c.jpg 4321e9f96cfa66bfce0fb7a3c24facb3 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 International Paper Company Description An account of the resource (1898-1975?) The International Paper occupied the northern edge of Tonawanda Island for over 50 years, processing lumber for use in magazines and stationery. Organized in 1898 and uniting disparate interests across New York and New England, the company in 1931 purchased the paper mill that had been established by the Tonawanda Paper Company on Tonawanda Island in 1924. Many residents still recall the distinctive odor of the factory, and its green treatment wells still stand conspicuously on Tonawanda Island's eastern shore. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <ul> <li><a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=O9g8BQAAQBAJ&dq">Tonawanda and North Tonawanda 1940-1960</a>, page 10, Historical Society of the Tonawandas</li> <li><a href="https://theniagarabranch.wordpress.com/international-paper-north-tonawanda/">International Paper North Tonawanda, The Niagara Branch blog. </a>Acccessed January, 2017.</li> </ul> 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 International Paper Co., photo (c.1938).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1938 photo tonawandaisland https://nthistory.com/files/original/7c26c21f6c91c83232810dfb8692e785.jpg fb3c725be11bbac16297525b1fdca9d4 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: The Long Bridge - Engineers were already discussing the replacement of the Long Bridge when weeks of heavy spring flooding and a collision with an out-of-control scow compromise the middle support pier on the evening of March 28th, 1916. Around 10 p.m. that evening, bridge pedestrians hear a great crash and feel vibrations. "Several of the women on the structure became so weak from fright they had to be assisted from the bridge by their escorts" (Tonawanda News, March 29, 1916). The police quickly close the bridge traffic. But the worst is not over. The bridge begins slowly sinking into the creek and is soon impassable. The New York Telephone Company (whose main cable crossed the bridge) warns connectivity between the halves of the Niagara Frontier might be cut off. More canal boats are carried by the current over the dam and into the bridges, as is the body of a North Tonawanda schoolteacher, Miss Mary Hill, who was missing since January. It is presumed a suicide, though "no cause has been assigned for her act" (Ibid). 1920-1978: The bascule (lift) bridge - The replacement bridge was engineered to open and let masted boats to pass on the south side. According to a plaque on the site, it was built by the Bethlehem Steel Bridge Corporation. The <a href="https://www.eriecanal.org/texts/Whitford/1921/chap32.html">Whitford book on eriecanal.org</a> gives the following contract information: <table> <tbody> <tr> <td>Contract No.</td> <td>Work</td> <td>Contractor</td> <td>Date</td> <td>Cost</td> </tr> <tr> <td>147</td> <td>Bascule bridge, Main and Webster Sts., Tonawanda</td> <td>Lathrop, Shea & Henwood Co.</td> <td>9/10/17</td> <td>$254,019</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> This collection features photos of the bascule 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 opening, Webster Street, photo (c.1938).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1938 bridge photo webster https://nthistory.com/files/original/732f6ab8861c5c069e840b3421f6b240.jpeg aaea57ebdfcb06df050239b56e4f08cd https://nthistory.com/files/original/ecae929f319c2a40f18d0f202027a9d5.jpeg c2ca93e81c1ab199ad2e19daa4608f85 https://nthistory.com/files/original/7e127c9ff8d98a386841b7d0c18cc059.jpeg 2bfd500c263b8da3cc4e06aecd9dff87 https://nthistory.com/files/original/2e71a93d4fd0f210a00877d1dd95cb4e.jpeg c00787e1e0dd50d3d0c9f155728c1600 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 Photographers and Photographic Portraits 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 Hunting camp, photos (c.1900, O.L. Zimmerman photographer, 276 Vandervoort Street).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1900 cabinet card camp hunting person photo 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 Trains and Trolleys Description An account of the resource Trains Soon after the Erie Canal is completed, railroads begin to compete for business. From <a href="https://researchworks.oclc.org/archivegrid/collection/data/930152959">researchworks.oclc.org</a>: <blockquote>In 1834 the Buffalo and Niagara Falls Railroad Company was incorporated to take over the Buffalo and Black Rock Company. It extended the lines to Niagara Falls and into Tonawanda. In 1853 the Buffalo and Niagara Falls Railroad Company was leased by New York Central Railroad and was merged in 1855.</blockquote> From <a href="https://www.niagarafallsinfo.com/niagara-falls-history/niagara-falls-municipal-history/railroads-of-niagara-falls/the-buffalo-niagara-falls-railroad/">niagarafallsinfo.com</a>: <blockquote>The Buffalo & Niagara Falls Railroad was incorporated on May 3rd, 1834. The Legislature of the State of New York passed a law to empower the railroad to construct a single or double track railroad between the City of Buffalo and the <a href="https://www.niagarafallsinfo.com/niagara-falls-history/niagara-falls-municipal-history/the-city-of-the-falls-plan/the-idea-for-the-city-of-the-falls/">Village at Niagara Falls</a>. The railroad had a mandate to operate for a 50 year term and was empowered to absorb all rights, privileges and franchises belonging to the Buffalo and Black Rock Railroad Company, which had been built and was being operated by horse power. The Buffalo & Niagara Falls Railroad began operating in 1845. The 28 mile trip from Buffalo to Niagara Falls was a three hour journey being pulled by a wood stoked steam locomotive.... In 1852, the Buffalo & Niagara Falls Railroad relocated their tracks to the west side of the Erie Canal. On December 22nd 1853, the Buffalo & Niagara Falls Railroad was leased to the New York Central Railroad. On April 23rd 1869, the New York Central Railroad began operations within the Niagara escarpment.</blockquote> From <a href="https://buffalohistory.org/Explore/Exhibits/virtual_exhibits/buffalo_anniversary/175th/page_e1.htm">buffalohistory.org</a>: <blockquote>The Buffalo and Niagara Falls Rail Road was the first in Erie County to use steam locomotives. Service from Black Rock to Tonawanda began in August, 1836; from Buffalo to Tonawanda in September; and by November, 1836, the train ran on a regular schedule between Buffalo & Niagara Falls.</blockquote> Railroads on the maps The <a href="https://nthistory.com/items/show/3974">1837 Tonawanda/Whitehaven map</a> shows the B&NF railroad already established on Webster. It also shows a "Road to Lockport" and a "Proposed railroad to Lockport" heading out "Detroit Street" (later, Goundry Street). In <a href="https://nthistory.com/items/show/1258">this 1838 map</a>, it appears the former "road" hosts a new "Tonawanda & Lockport Railroad." Some more info from <a href="https://www.newyorkcentraltrainstation.org/history-new-york-central-train-station">newyorkcentraltrainstattion.org.</a> By <a href="https://nthistory.com/items/show/3560">1852</a>, a third line, "The Canandaigua and Niagara Falls," is added. From <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmira_and_Lake_Ontario_Railroad">Wikipedia</a>: <blockquote>On July 1, 1853, the Canandaigua and Niagara Falls Railroad opened between Canandaigua and North Tonawanda. It was also 6 ft (1,829 mm) broad gauge, and was leased by the Canandaigua & Elmira RR, giving it access to the Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge.</blockquote> In <a href="https://nthistory.com/items/show/1664">this 1854 map</a>, The Canandaigua route has changed to run south of the Erie Canal and then be carried over the canal into North Tonawanda at the foot of Oliver street. The cantilever bridge will later be built here. By the time of <a href="https://nthistory.com/items/show/240">this 1875 map</a>, a third railroad crosses the canal into North Tonawanda: The Erie, at the foot of Vandervoort street. As late as 1908, there are still tracks on the east side of Webster street. Looks like the railroad agrees to remove them in December 1921, not sure when it happens. Trolleys Before everybody in North Tonawanda could afford their very own muffler-less Honda Civic to run up and down Oliver Street, trolleys 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 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/d080f0cf455c6d3230c2c29e8aa2c835.png 4b229033dc11e68e94cfe29a24002820 https://nthistory.com/files/original/0d3f9c135cb7b14e71a690f553c065b0.png 203fc55a5893374040e03f52e102ef5f 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 King Construction Company 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 King Construction Co., mill wood workers, photo (c1910).png Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1910 person photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/238652e7a4796fe15e8d2f05ee9cf960.jpg 91e1b479419de2c6a8a68039fde78a44 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 Avenues / Ironton (Neighborhood) Description An account of the resource <img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/83e.jpg" alt="Ironton and First Ave in 2024. Photo by Dennis Reed Jr" />Ironton Street and First Ave in 2024. Photo by Dennis Reed Jr See also: <a href="https://www.nthistory.com/articles/lost-village-of-ironton/">The lost village of Ironton and the birth of the Avenues</a> and <a href="https://nthistory.com/collections/show/141">Avenues Folk: Mary Kijowski-Konstanty of Fifteenth Ave</a>. Origins of Ironton The "spark" for Ironton arrives in 1873, when Niagara Furnace (later <a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/16">Tonawanda Iron and Steel)</a> locates on the banks of the Niagara River near Wheatfield Street. The unofficial village of "Ironton" is named after the promising venture. After initial excitement (and investment in the surrounding land) however, the furnace shuts down after only a year in operation.  Early doings In 1875 map, homes are seen in the lower Avenues. Oliver Street business? Churches. Colonel Payne's estate is still intact across Payne and up to Dahlgren Place, the former northern limit of the early Avenues. Ironton Street from 1880s according to ArcGIS. "From 1880-1890, its population increased form 1,492 to 4,793," (Biographical and portrait cyclopedia of Niagara County, New York, p.110). In 1882, the establishment of a John Cichoki's <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/1665">tavern on River Road</a> near Wheatfield street <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/1543">is a foothold</a> for early Polish settlers. Grocers and butchers are nearby. In 1884 a "minor school in a small frame building" is established less than a quarter mile east down Wheatfield at Dahlgren Place (<a href="https://www.nthistory.com/items/show/1477">Buffalo Courier Express, 1905)</a>. In 1889 or 1890, the much larger, Richardsonian Romanesque style <a href="http://nthistory.com/collections/show/64">Ironton Public School #2</a> opens at the corner of 1st Ave and Oliver Street.  The furnace burns again; the River Road industrial corridor The old Niagara Furnace site is expanded and relaunched in 1889 by Tonawanda Iron and Steel. The adjacent marshes and former farms once again become valuable real estate, with "manufacturing interests" courted for the valuable land along the river and railroad tracks. More Poles, Hungarians and others flock to the Avenues, bringing their languages, traditions and chickens with them. An 1891 guidebook describes the real estate situation: <blockquote>It was purchased from Pratt & Jewett by Geo. P. Smith and A. J. Hathaway, Oct. 15, 1889, replatted, and Jan. 1st, 1890, put on the market. Within a year 500 building lots had been sold and 100 houses erected. With June of the present year [1891] the Ironton Land Co. was incorporated with capital of §100,000 and everything bids fair for a prosperous career, as this is the river center of North Tonawanda corporation, and being traversed by all the rail- roads it cannot fail to secure prominent manufacturing interests. The Ironton addition is less than a mile from the North Tonawanda City Hall. With the Iron & Steel Works, the surrounding lumber interests and the bolt and nut works of Plumb, Burdict ct Barnard, which has recently been located on the adjoining property, this section of the city will make a convenient and desirable place for mechanics and business firms. It has the water supply, electric lights, and will soon be connected by the electric street car line. A double two story brick block for stores has just been completed on Oliver street, making a nice addition to the mercantile conveniences there, a $15,000 brick school house was erected a couple of years since, a church dedicated in August and this section has all the modern conveniences of the older part of the city.</blockquote> Land In November 1889, <a href="https://niagara.nygenweb.net/biography/smithgeorgep1897bio.html">George P. Smith</a> and <a href="https://niagara.nygenweb.net/biography/hathawayaj1897bio.html">A. J. Hathaway</a> buy land opposite the iron works. Incorporation into the City of North Tonawanda The village of "Ironton" (along with the villages of North Tonawanda, Gratwick and Martinsville) is incorporated into the City of North Tonawanda in 1897. The last remnant of the old village name is in its "Ironton Street," running along the west edge of the original avenues. It never had its own post office, or government, but it is an interesting part of the patchwork of the original city that has mostly now vanished from public recall. An increasingly Polish community on the Avenues For the numerous Polish on the <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/3436">original seven avenues</a>, their church is the center of their community. OLC is established on Center Ave, exactly where the grotto is today. It is later rebuilt just south. <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/collections/show/98">Pettit Creek</a> flows through the area (it will be covered). <a href="http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2011/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News%201893%20Jul-Jul%201894%20Grayscale/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News%201893%20Jul-Jul%201894%20Grayscale%20-%200105.pdf">The paving of Oliver Street being planned August 26, 1893. </a><a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=zCwdAQAAIAAJ&dq=ironton+tonawanda&source=gbs_navlinks_s"> A progress report </a><a href="http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2011/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News%201893%20Jul-Jul%201894%20Grayscale/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News%201893%20Jul-Jul%201894%20Grayscale%20-%200169.pdf">about a month later</a><a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=zCwdAQAAIAAJ&dq=ironton+tonawanda&source=gbs_navlinks_s">. October 5 </a><a href="http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2011/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News%201893%20Jul-Jul%201894%20Grayscale/North%20Tonawanda%20NY%20Evening%20News%201893%20Jul-Jul%201894%20Grayscale%20-%200235.pdf">there is labor trouble between Poles and Italians</a><a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=zCwdAQAAIAAJ&dq=ironton+tonawanda&source=gbs_navlinks_s">.</a> The upper avenues remain essentially woods and marshes until the 1940s, when settlement accelerates with the nationwide Baby Boom.  Notes:  * Annual Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, of the State of New-York (1884, <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=EEEdAQAAIAAJ">Google Books)</a> Also has lots of details about new Goundry Street school and a brief mention of Gratwick school and enrollment figures.1890 "The village of Tonawanda is up and awake as far as educational matters are concerned. It has a progressive board of education composed of five members, all liberal men in their views. A new brick school building is nearly completed at Ironton, a suburb of the village, that would be a pride to any town."<a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=zCwdAQAAIAAJ&dq=ironton+tonawanda&source=gbs_navlinks_s"> </a> John Carr on Facebook in January 2017: "Go back to the 1800's and my great grandfather's farm, as well as several others, was there, extending from the river inland past Payne. The house was originally along the river. Eventually the lumber yards and steel mills pushed the property, and the house back from the river to Oliver (#849 or #869). In the 1890's, after his death, the property was sold off and developed into individual housing lots. At that time the area was annexed to North Tonawanda, before that the area was part of Wheatfield. Carr Street still exists by the town pool. Many of my great grand parents children and their families had homes in the area. We see the area today pretty much as it was developed then, however modernized a bit and not the capitol of industry it was then." <a href="https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=b5be67cf0e05477e8f4ad3161ab51422">ArcGIS</a> and old map notes: <ul> <li>1860 map show Cap. O. Shepard in a few places. From Ohio. Buried there. H(enry) Rosebrock from Hanover, Germany (1880 Census); H. Luttman German. F. Roney</li> <li>Homes on Ironton Street range between 1870 (96 Ironton), 1880 (144 Ironton) and into the early 1900s. Some Year 0s (e.g., 188).</li> <li>The River Rd - Wheatfield "businesses" at southeast corner are 1900-1930, couple of year 0s, though 1886 map shows SOMETHING there earlier.</li> <li>Weston & Son lumber all around in 1886 maps, Stocum & DeGraff south across Summer</li> <li>Simson Street: Properties start at 1860 (23 Simson), couple 1880s and 0s. "Rua, Joseph M" listed as owned on many.  1875 map it's called "Judd Ave, and names of homeowners are given (several Simsons); Called "Miller" in 1886 map. Early enclave for nearby mill, predating even Iron Works? </li> </ul> Map A diagram of a geographical area's major arteries of transportation, buildings, land owners and terrain. 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 Avenues, Payne Estate, future Mid-City Plaza, aerial photo (1938).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1938 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://niagara-county.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html">https://niagara-county.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html</a> avenues gratwick ironton map photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/59bf29ccd36cc345aa03edc21a778fef.jpg 550c8bb5fdb1f0e5c3bc6c8242f878b8 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 Avondale / Oliver Theater (358 Oliver) Description An account of the resource <img class="cover" alt="Avondale Theatre as it appeared in 1924. Sketch by Dennis Reed Jr." src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/69.jpg" />Avondale Theatre as it appeared in 1924 (Dennis Reed Jr) The southwest corner of Robinson and Oliver Streets—now an empty lot—was formerly occupied by a silent film theater in 1910, an evangelical center in the 50s, and a concert hall in the 80s before being demolished. Oliver Theater (1910-1921) The Oliver Theater opens its doors to the silent film-hungry public on November 3rd, 1910. It is operated by one Henry Klinger of Wheatfield Street (formerly of Buffalo). It boasts a capacity of 500 seats, modern electric lighting and ventilation, and is "sanitarily perfect."  It exhibits the latest pictures, three each evening, and a Saturday matinee for a 5 cent admission. In those more religious times, "blue laws" forbid certain kinds of work and the sale of alcohol on Sundays. Klinger battles with local authorities to permit the auditorium to be open to the public on Sundays, pointing out that other cities do. "Why, some of the churches in Lockport are showing pictures on Sundays, so I don't see why they should be considered so immoral in North Tonawanda," <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/2272">he says</a> in a 1913 interview. But Mayor B. L. Rand will not budge. Klinger takes the fight to the courts. In July of 1915 a Lockport judge <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/2273">rules against</a> the mayor, opening the way to Sunday picture shows. At some point Klinger sells "the house to Snyder and Zimmerman of Buffalo" but buys it back from them around July 1921 with a plan to "remodel the theater and increase its seating capacity" (from <a href="http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/28609">cinematreasures.org</a>). A public contest is held to rename the theater.  Grocery store owner George Roggow wins the $10 prize with his romantic entry, "Avondale." He claims he <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/3338">read the name</a> from the tag inside his shirt. The Avondale Theater (1921-1955) The newly christened theater re-opens on September 1, 1921. L. E. Bargar is manager. At his request, he is appointed as a "special police officer," serving without pay but with the authority to make arrests. In January, 1922, Wurlitzer installs a cutting-edge Hope-Jones Unit Orchestra with a $2.5K price tag. It debuts in February, the same month early silent film actor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lillian_Walker">Lillian Walker</a> (aka "Dimples") visits the theater in person, and speaks from the stage at each performance. Apparently some vaudeville is presented at the Avondale among the films. On June 17, 1922 the NEWS reports the Great Abdiz, the Man with the Iron Jaw, and Bryson appear in an Arabian juggling act. In October 1924, L. E. Barger resigns as manager. He is said to have been in the picture business for 22 years. In 1925, manager James. J. Kelly gets Duo-Art Films of Rochester to produce a "civic review" of the Tonawandas in pictures. Kelly becomes manager of the newly opened Riviera Theatre in 1926. Daniel A. North is a longtime owner and operator, with a two-year absence between 1936 and 1938. The Avondale is still showing pictures as late as 1955, but is put up for sale in 1956. Evangelistic Center of the Tonawandas (1956-1979) In 1956, the building is purchased by Italian Pentecostals at the  Christian Tabernacle who have outgrown their modest church on 195 Schenck Street, and have been renting the Avondale. After extensive remodeling, the old theater is renamed the Assembly of God Evangelistic Center of the Tonawandas. Pastor Cooper's parsonage was at 11 16th Avenue until 1960. The first services are held on November 4, 1956.  It appears to have been a lively era, as scores if not hundreds of touring speakers and religious musical acts appear in ads in the News over the following two decades. In 1979, the Abundant Life Assembly of God <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%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2520-%25201795.pdf%23xml%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3De67711b%26DocId%3D2254257%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520U%26HitCount%3D23%26hits%3D1f%2B71%2B1a6%2B22e%2B2ff%2B335%2B428%2B583%2B58a%2B5cb%2B5d6%2B5dd%2B5e6%2B5e9%2B621%2B62c%2B669%2B715%2B771%2B7e2%2B841%2B846%2B84d%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%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2520-%25201795.pdf&xml=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3De67711b%26DocId%3D2254257%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520U%26HitCount%3D23%26hits%3D1f%2B71%2B1a6%2B22e%2B2ff%2B335%2B428%2B583%2B58a%2B5cb%2B5d6%2B5dd%2B5e6%2B5e9%2B621%2B62c%2B669%2B715%2B771%2B7e2%2B841%2B846%2B84d%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&openFirstHlPage=false">sell the building and move to new quarters</a> at 1001 East Robinson in North Tonawanda. They owned the land since 1967, and have tent revivals there. In 2009 Abundant Life <a href="https://buffalonews.com/news/congregation-reaps-what-it-sows-with-its-first-public-services/article_53270053-59e1-59d2-a1c3-47121a1b4863.html">is closed</a> "because of a dwindling congregation." Final years By December 1979 the "Oliver Auction House" <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/3346">is doing business</a> at that address. The theater enjoys a final act in the mid 1980s as the "Avondale Ballroom," featuring live musical performances. It opens in April 1985, and is run by Dennis Lasky (who also conducted the auction house operation). The theater is razed in the late 1980s. 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 Former site of 358 Oliver, photo (2022).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022 google photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/fe23aafae8bf3402bd9203d436e7b0c2.jpg dbac434449db591f504720cbbbc80339 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 Avondale / Oliver Theater (358 Oliver) Description An account of the resource <img class="cover" alt="Avondale Theatre as it appeared in 1924. Sketch by Dennis Reed Jr." src="http://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/69.jpg" />Avondale Theatre as it appeared in 1924 (Dennis Reed Jr) The southwest corner of Robinson and Oliver Streets—now an empty lot—was formerly occupied by a silent film theater in 1910, an evangelical center in the 50s, and a concert hall in the 80s before being demolished. Oliver Theater (1910-1921) The Oliver Theater opens its doors to the silent film-hungry public on November 3rd, 1910. It is operated by one Henry Klinger of Wheatfield Street (formerly of Buffalo). It boasts a capacity of 500 seats, modern electric lighting and ventilation, and is "sanitarily perfect."  It exhibits the latest pictures, three each evening, and a Saturday matinee for a 5 cent admission. In those more religious times, "blue laws" forbid certain kinds of work and the sale of alcohol on Sundays. Klinger battles with local authorities to permit the auditorium to be open to the public on Sundays, pointing out that other cities do. "Why, some of the churches in Lockport are showing pictures on Sundays, so I don't see why they should be considered so immoral in North Tonawanda," <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/2272">he says</a> in a 1913 interview. But Mayor B. L. Rand will not budge. Klinger takes the fight to the courts. In July of 1915 a Lockport judge <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/2273">rules against</a> the mayor, opening the way to Sunday picture shows. At some point Klinger sells "the house to Snyder and Zimmerman of Buffalo" but buys it back from them around July 1921 with a plan to "remodel the theater and increase its seating capacity" (from <a href="http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/28609">cinematreasures.org</a>). A public contest is held to rename the theater.  Grocery store owner George Roggow wins the $10 prize with his romantic entry, "Avondale." He claims he <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/3338">read the name</a> from the tag inside his shirt. The Avondale Theater (1921-1955) The newly christened theater re-opens on September 1, 1921. L. E. Bargar is manager. At his request, he is appointed as a "special police officer," serving without pay but with the authority to make arrests. In January, 1922, Wurlitzer installs a cutting-edge Hope-Jones Unit Orchestra with a $2.5K price tag. It debuts in February, the same month early silent film actor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lillian_Walker">Lillian Walker</a> (aka "Dimples") visits the theater in person, and speaks from the stage at each performance. Apparently some vaudeville is presented at the Avondale among the films. On June 17, 1922 the NEWS reports the Great Abdiz, the Man with the Iron Jaw, and Bryson appear in an Arabian juggling act. In October 1924, L. E. Barger resigns as manager. He is said to have been in the picture business for 22 years. In 1925, manager James. J. Kelly gets Duo-Art Films of Rochester to produce a "civic review" of the Tonawandas in pictures. Kelly becomes manager of the newly opened Riviera Theatre in 1926. Daniel A. North is a longtime owner and operator, with a two-year absence between 1936 and 1938. The Avondale is still showing pictures as late as 1955, but is put up for sale in 1956. Evangelistic Center of the Tonawandas (1956-1979) In 1956, the building is purchased by Italian Pentecostals at the  Christian Tabernacle who have outgrown their modest church on 195 Schenck Street, and have been renting the Avondale. After extensive remodeling, the old theater is renamed the Assembly of God Evangelistic Center of the Tonawandas. Pastor Cooper's parsonage was at 11 16th Avenue until 1960. The first services are held on November 4, 1956.  It appears to have been a lively era, as scores if not hundreds of touring speakers and religious musical acts appear in ads in the News over the following two decades. In 1979, the Abundant Life Assembly of God <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%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2520-%25201795.pdf%23xml%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3De67711b%26DocId%3D2254257%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520U%26HitCount%3D23%26hits%3D1f%2B71%2B1a6%2B22e%2B2ff%2B335%2B428%2B583%2B58a%2B5cb%2B5d6%2B5dd%2B5e6%2B5e9%2B621%2B62c%2B669%2B715%2B771%2B7e2%2B841%2B846%2B84d%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%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2FNorth%2520Tonawanda%2520NY%2520Evening%2520News%25201979%2520%2520Grayscale%2520-%25201795.pdf&xml=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3De67711b%26DocId%3D2254257%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520U%26HitCount%3D23%26hits%3D1f%2B71%2B1a6%2B22e%2B2ff%2B335%2B428%2B583%2B58a%2B5cb%2B5d6%2B5dd%2B5e6%2B5e9%2B621%2B62c%2B669%2B715%2B771%2B7e2%2B841%2B846%2B84d%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&openFirstHlPage=false">sell the building and move to new quarters</a> at 1001 East Robinson in North Tonawanda. They owned the land since 1967, and have tent revivals there. In 2009 Abundant Life <a href="https://buffalonews.com/news/congregation-reaps-what-it-sows-with-its-first-public-services/article_53270053-59e1-59d2-a1c3-47121a1b4863.html">is closed</a> "because of a dwindling congregation." Final years By December 1979 the "Oliver Auction House" <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/3346">is doing business</a> at that address. The theater enjoys a final act in the mid 1980s as the "Avondale Ballroom," featuring live musical performances. It opens in April 1985, and is run by Dennis Lasky (who also conducted the auction house operation). The theater is razed in the late 1980s. 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 Purchase of Avondale Theater completed, photo (Tonawanda News, 1956-10-25).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1956-10-25 person photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/9f3bc49c2b1fecf34e5dd30da06d456c.jpeg 9f314db2fd2c968f5497ac82c7998874 https://nthistory.com/files/original/528c0513cfc916918ab90654d8bf29b6.jpeg 79820ddc08b4154a48701c3d61abb9e6 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 Gratwick School Description An account of the resource The first schoolhouse in the village of Gratwick is a one-room frame building put up by the education-minded Germans in 1885 (Crosbie). Built in 1892, Public School Number 4 opens at Payne and Stenzil in 1894. It is enlarged in 1924, and at least once thereafter. In area known as <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Report_of_the_Superintendent_of_Public_I/h0A_AAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=wheatfield%20niagara%20school&pg=PA144&printsec=frontcover">Kohl's Woods</a>? 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 Gratwick School, two photos (c.1970).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1970 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Scott Farrel gratwick photo school https://nthistory.com/files/original/edb222517931b15521f5cb9c265bd56d.jpg 1baff0d2622db09096c6ae00d7f5fb26 https://nthistory.com/files/original/642600ec6de52ef428d9ce1cfab336e4.jpg 63eec9a43390d95ae6eff4f8eb0b4998 https://nthistory.com/files/original/676d3f28f6663d597cfa987a0f8cd7db.jpg b61577c1e2bc646b55c94319227b9d12 https://nthistory.com/files/original/50f6efc3375d24f71f522a1c1bba87cc.jpg d2e9e7dbe28f42c448e2aa9164508d03 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 Senator John F. Kennedy at North Tonawanda City Hall, photos and complete text of his speech (1960-09-28).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1960-09-28 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived https://www.jfklibrary.org/asset-viewer/archives/JFKSEN/0912/JFKSEN-0912-013 Description An account of the resource The senator visited North Tonawanda as part of his campaign for president. Complete speech: REMARKS OF SENATOR JOHN F. KENNEDY, NORTH TONAWANDA, NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 28, 1960 SENATOR KENNEDY: Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Mayor, Mr. Pendergast, Mr. Levitt, Mayor Wagner. The last Presidential candidate to come into this particular area of New York was Al Smith in 1928. Governor Smith in that campaign and in many campaigns preceding it used as his basic slogan the motto, "Let's look at the record," and he compared what he had done in New York State and he compared the record of the Democratic Party over the preceding years to that of the Republican Party. I say in 1960, let's look at the record. Mr. Nixon has stated that party labels don't mean very much in 1960. I think they mean a good deal, because they tell something about the candidates of both parties. The Republicans never would have nominated me, and the Democrats never would have nominated Mr. Nixon. They nominated Mr. Nixon because they knew where he stood, because they knew that he believed in the things for which they believed in, and I do not. I think that is the issue in this campaign. Are we going to move forward or are we going to stand still? Are we going to send a green light to the 1960's? Are we going to feel that everything is being done today is as good as we can do? I think the record of the Democratic Party written in this century, written in the last 25 years, establishes a sound basis for us in the 1960's, and that is a record of service to the people, of believing that however good this country may be, it can be better. This country has been made by people who were not satisfied. The whole Western United States was developed by people who wanted to better themselves. The United States was built by people who came from other sections because they thought they could have a better life. Mr. Nixon says I am running America down. I am not. I am trying to build America up. What I am saying is that with vigorous leadership, with leadership which will realize the potential of this country, this country can maintain its own freedom and the freedom of those who look to us for help. This is an important election, and I come to you in 1960, in October and September, asking your assistance. This is not merely a contest between Mr. Nixon and myself. It is a contest between two parties, and it is a contest between two parties which have had a different philosophy during their political tradition. All through our history in this century, the Democratic Party has looked to the future, with Woodrow Wilson's New Freedom, and Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal and Harry Truman's Fair Deal. We have looked ahead, and I ask you to look ahead in this country. We face an extremely difficult and hazardous time. I don't think the office of the Presidency is going to be easy. I think in many ways the job of the next President will be more difficult than any president since Abraham Lincoln, and it isn't merely the office of the President – I think the job of an average citizen in the United States, the responsibilities that he will face, are more difficult and burdensome than they have been ever in the past. When Presidential candidates ran many years ago, they discussed only a few issues, because only a few issues disturbed our tranquility. Now the issues which face us are not merely to maintain employment in Niagara County, not merely to develop the resources of Northern New York, not merely to make a better life for our people in New York State and in the United States. Now the President, and therefore the people, have to be concerned with the Congo and Cuba and Laos, countries which most of us had never heard of ten years ago, and yet which will affect the lives of everyone here – Guinea, Ghana, countries which were colonial countries two years ago now independent. What they do will affect the security of your children in every school in this country. Therefore, we stand as the dominant force in the Coalition for freedom which must move strongly in the next ten years. I ask your support in this campaign, not merely because I think we can move this country here at home, but also because I think if we do the things at home that must be done, I think it is possible for us to stand once again in the world, not as a dominant power, but as the leader of a coalition of countries who wish to associate with us, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. I wish we could worry just about our own problems, but I do disagree strongly with those who say that they are conservatives at home and risk takers abroad. I think that we have to move here at home. I think we have to carry a big stick, and I think, as Theodore Roosevelt said, we should speak softly. We want peace. We want security for ourselves. We want to maintain life in this continent and this planet. We want freedom to expand, and I think the best way we can do it is to do our job here in this state and here in this country. Build a better life for our people and then what we do here will speak far more loudly than what we say. This is a contest of nerve and will. The next ten, fifteen or twenty years may determine the outcome. The Soviet system and our system are on trial. The question will be which system has the longest staying power? Which can maintain itself in good times and bad? Which can serve as an inspiration to people around the world? Do they want to move with them or with us? Khrushchev and the President of the United States, only personify the two sides. The real question is which system and which people have the power, the will, the determination and the conviction? I think we do. I think our future can be assured, but I think we have a responsibility to ourselves and to those who look to us to move in this country, to set before ourselves our unfinished business, and then get to it. I ask your help in this campaign, and I can assure you that if we are successful, we are going to work to make the United States not first if, but, or when, but first, period. And we are going to move. Thank you. (Applause) Source: Papers of John F. Kennedy. Pre-Presidential Papers. Senate Files, Box 912, "North Tonawanda, New York, 28 September 1960." John F. Kennedy Presidential Library. photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/e43b23a2e1ae2c71f00719a3d5295694.jpg fc88434713f8e221b084d53e4fb1261e https://nthistory.com/files/original/9b52c6780464c7f218dfa2fa6ab627e9.jpg c97f3e04891776015ad9d870cb13cab6 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 Buffalo Wings and Brewhouse, Bestaste Mini Market (653 Oliver) Description An account of the resource From at least 1934, this address in the heart of North Tonawanda's Polish community serves as a vital neighborhood deli. It has since been remodeled and repurposed as a "brewhouse" by Matt Bille. in the Some appearances of 653 Oliver Street in local newspapers: <ul> <li>1916-04-29 A. Rudzinski (SOCONY Kerosene oil dealer)</li> <li>1916-11-22 - Bracia Rudzinscy</li> <li>1924 - Current building according to PROSGAR</li> <li>1932 - Ed Rudzinski Groceries and Meats (ad)</li> <li>1935 - Ed Rudzinski & Bros.</li> <li>1942 - Retail Beer License to Edward Rudzinski</li> <li>1959 - Retail Beer License, "Frank exec. Of the Estate of Edward"</li> <li>1960-1965 Rudzinski's Grocery and Meat Market (Francis A.)</li> <li>1965 - Someone ironing, altering clothes at address</li> <li>1973-04-12 - DEED From Niagara S&L Assn to Frank and Mabel Zielski for 653 Oliver ($15K)</li> <li>1974-05-23 - Beer License for off-premise consumption</li> <li>1975-11-17 - "Holiday Mini Markets" ad</li> <li>1986-09-23 Bestaste Mini Market Grand Opening advertized</li> </ul> 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 Former Bestaste Mini Markets, photos (Dennis Reed Jr., 2016-03-08).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2016-03-08 avenues hd photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/e978aab744f6aa928f9a56d210c9b0ca.jpeg f3717e897295d3f8478567164999706f https://nthistory.com/files/original/946d9c7e9a29e48701c974eea84bb114.jpeg c99d3f2392ccbd0f88e10672bc22d073 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 NTHS women's basketball team, team photo with names (1923).jpg Description An account of the resource Moulton, Hamilton, Doty, Peters, Rooney, Wherry. An Elizabeth Wherry played guard for NTHS in January 1922, was a Miss Twin Cities entrant with 40K votes in 1923, and in a YWCA basketball game in 1930. Obits show an Elizabeth Russel Wherry (9-11-1952) and Elizabeth Wherry (5-1-1978). basketball person photo sports women https://nthistory.com/files/original/40bee2a88d0aeefb876ca0f13c3d321f.jpg b0efbf6c8dcf5035cda492b836b7ce6e 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 Herman P. Schroeder tavern (870 Oliver Street) Description An account of the resource The son of a German immigrant, Herman P. Schroeder came to North Tonawanda in the mid-1890s in the employ of Buffalo Bolt. He first lives in Gratwick, and later moves to 870 Oliver Street (near the entrance to the Buffalo Bolt plant). He opens a tavern there about 1902, operating it until Prohibition. In the 1920s he opens an ice cream and candy store across from the Oliver / Avondale Theater at the corner of Robinson and Oliver. 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 Herman P. Schroeder saloon, 870 Oliver Street, photo (Kearns, Bille, c1915).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1915 avenues photo tavern https://nthistory.com/files/original/ad3fe1d83758b2cd81d32545a06261de.jpg 7c6a0d4eb96f1ddde866dfa169347c17 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 Allan Herschell Companies Description An account of the resource <img class="cover" src="http://www.nthistory.com/files/original/0a8137a27b9978ab2f72819b2bd699cf.jpg" alt="" /> An 1894 Armitage-Herschell advertisement shows a not-at-all-dangerous-to-children-looking steam boiler and pulleys providing motive power to the company's signature device. <div>On gilded signs posted at its southern and northern entrances, North Tonawanda introduces itself to visitors as "The Home of the Carrousel." The still-ubiquitous fairground staple was not invented in North Tonawanda (some version of it had been around <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/dizzy-history-carousels-begins-knights-180964100">since at least the 12th Century</a>), but thousands were produced here and the highest levels of craftsmanship were attained here under the guidance of Scottish-born Allan Herschell. </div> In 1872 (Landmarks says 1873), the Armitage-Herschell Co. begins as a small brass and iron foundry on Manhattan Street, comprised of Englishman <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/889">James Armitage</a>, and Scottish brothers <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/880">George</a> and <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/877">Allan Herschell</a>. The firm survives devastating fires in 1874 and 1875, and expands to a location off Oliver Street (whence comes the name, "Mechanic Street"), adding engines and boilers to their specialties. Youngest partner Allan sees a carousel while traveling, and recognizes ways it can be improved. By 1887, his "Improved Steam Riding Gallery" captivates the world, and people from India and France demand the modern amusement. The merry-go-round-makers at first import the accompanying band organs from the old European master-builders of Germany and France, but high tariffs decide them to instead import German organ maker <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/936">Eugene de Kleist</a> from England (de Kleist begins making organs at his <a href="http://www.nthistory.com/collections/show/24">North Tonawanda Barrel Organ Factory</a> in 1893). They organize in 1890. James Armitage and George Herschell die in early 1900. The Armitage-Herschell Company is succeeded by Herschell, Spillman & Company, and the Allan Herschell Company. Allan Herschell dies in 1927. The latter company continues making amusements, including miniature trains, boats and airplanes (some of which can be played upon at the <a href="http://www.carrouselmuseum.org">Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum</a> in North Tonawanda) as late as the 1960s. There is a large Herschell family plot in Sweeney Cemetery. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <ul> <li><a href="http://www.nthistory.com/items/show/607">Landmarks of Niagara County (1897)</a></li> <li>“<a href="http://carrouselmuseum.org/site/about/allan-herschell">Allen Herschell History</a>.” Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum, 2014.</li> </ul> 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 2nd Annual Outing of Herschell-Spillman, photo (Olver Family of Gratwick and Ward R. Bray, 1902-07-03).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1902-07-03 Description An account of the resource <a href="mailto:me@dennisreedjr.com">Email us</a> if you can identify anyone! <ul> <li>Ward Olver – back row, fourth from the right</li> <li>Fred Brandt – 2nd row from top, 6th from right</li> <li>Wallace Olver – 2nd row from bottom, 2nd person from the right (excluding the band members)</li> <li>Tussing's band at right</li> </ul> factory group hd photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/b0caabcd9ad565f7603c0c8504fe17ce.jpg 268fdeb30a93dbee7a5d3cae5fce1b7c 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 Edward G Reisterer, Cashier German-American Bank, photo (1893-08-05 Tonawanda News).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1893-08-05 person photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/161e1a8f1b19ec636d294f026d943dd7.jpg 4a1b30102d438ae348dd0c86dd40eb20 https://nthistory.com/files/original/0b75e8a4063c9a1374f4aa4c4654a393.jpg 97ff62a70331e395430f2cb2b05c5980 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 Photographers and Photographic Portraits 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 African-American girl, photo portrait by Clench of Tonawanda (c1900).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1900 cabinet card clench person photo https://nthistory.com/files/original/d7207b101d2f7e35576f6180c89d410b.jpg 2ced46c8731f605885b7f71918069463 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 Firefighting in the Tonawandas Description An account of the resource <img class="cover" src="https://www.nthistory.com/custom/cover/80.jpg" alt="Gratwick Hose No.6, Felton Street, c.1929" />Gratwick Hose No.6, Felton Street, c.1929 <blockquote>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. North Tonawanda depended heavily on Volunteer Firemen and quickly grew to seven companies located at important places around the city.</blockquote> - Sarah E. Walter's thesis (nthistorymuseum.org). Allan Herschell "helped to organize the first fire company of North Tonawanda" (Biographical and portrait cyclopedia of Niagara County, New York, p.361). <table border="1" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1" align="center"> <tbody> <tr> <td>Started</td> <td>Name</td> <td>Notes</td> </tr> <tr> <td>May 7, 1876</td> <td>North Tonawanda Bucket Company / Columbia Hook and Ladder Company No.1</td> <td>Thompson in 1893 directory</td> </tr> <tr> <td>March 1, 1886</td> <td>Active Hose Company No.2</td> <td>"Ironton Boys", Robinson south of Marion in 1893</td> </tr> <tr> <td>1886-1909</td> <td>Hydrant Hose Company No.3</td> <td>Sweeney and Main at bridge</td> </tr> <tr> <td>April 1887</td> <td>Live Active Hose Co. No.4</td> <td> Thompson St (1893), now Goundry and Vandervoort</td> </tr> <tr> <td>January 26, 1891</td> <td>Rescue Fire Company No.5</td> <td> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>1886?</td> <td><a href="https://yellow.place/en/gratwick-hose-fire-company-6-north-tonawanda-usa">Gratwick Hose Company No.6</a></td> <td>Felton until 1962.</td> </tr> <tr> <td>1894</td> <td>Sweeney Hose No.7</td> <td> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Of Hydrant Hose Co. No. 3, it was said somewhere: <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> According to Harry Dorn in an article in this set, <blockquote>The Tonawanda Fire Dept. was organized in the early 1860s when the Village of Tonawanda had a population of 2,000...One of the frst companies was the Shepard Hose Company which after several years was known as the DeGraff Hose, Hydrant Hose Company and thewn on Aug 25, 1898 became National Hose No.1 [Ed. Hydrant Hose appears in newspaper record until at least early 1900s].</blockquote> Columbia Hook & Ladder in The Tonawanda News, May 9, 1896: <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. 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. The parent company of North Tonawanda was the Columbia Hook and Ladder Company; 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> 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 Firefighter by Clench, 20 South Canal St., photo portrait (c1900).jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1900 cabinet card civic clench firefighter photo