In an era long ago, Republicans had a majority in the New York State Assembly. But Democrats were better at baseball. [Read more…] about Some 1896 Lighter Side of Political History Anecdotes
Lockport
Niagara’s Manhattan Project Legacy Haunting Homeowners
Elevated radiation levels have been detected in the yards of over 120 homes in Niagara County, NY. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has been conducting the first radiological survey of the area since 1984 and at least four families have fled their homes.
Governor Kathy Hochul has called on the EPA to step up testing and accelerate distribution of resources to those affected [Read more…] about Niagara’s Manhattan Project Legacy Haunting Homeowners
19 NY Places Recommended for State and National Registers
The Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (State Parks) has announced recommendations by the New York State Board for Historic Preservation to add 19 properties and districts to the State and National Registers of Historic Places.
The nominations include a nineteenth-century church in Jefferson County that developed and promoted Universalism in Upstate New York, a pre-Revolutionary War house owned by seven generations of the Hulse family on Long Island’s North Shore, and additional documentation for New York City’s Hotel Chelsea recognizing its significance as a center of LGBTQ cultural and creative life. [Read more…] about 19 NY Places Recommended for State and National Registers
Erie Canal Bicentennial Flotillas Launching Wednesday
The Empire State will end its 2025 boating season with a series of Bicentennial Flotillas across the Erie Canal beginning Wednesday, September 24, in Buffalo.
Recently announced by the New York State Canal Corporation, the four waterborne parades are capstones to a summer-long series of special events that celebrated the 200th season of operation for the historic 524-mile waterway. [Read more…] about Erie Canal Bicentennial Flotillas Launching Wednesday
Drilling For Salt: Salt Springs & New York’s Salt Industry Origins
As the presence of salt in New York was first made manifest through saline mineral springs it is proper to begin this discussion with the history of their discovery and utilization. The most important of these are in Onondaga County at Syracuse.
About the middle of the seventeenth century several of the Jesuit missionaries during their journeys among the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois), in what is now the State of New York, heard local salt springs and related these experiences in the Relations of the Jesuit fathers. [Read more…] about Drilling For Salt: Salt Springs & New York’s Salt Industry Origins
200 Years of Erie Canal History (1825-2025)
In 2025, New York State commemorates the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Erie Canal from Albany to Buffalo. This event was transformative for both the state and the nation, linking the Great Lakes with the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean in an unprecedentedly efficient waterway.
During the bicentennial, we are offered an opportunity to reflect on two centuries of rich and complex history and discover how that period’s impacts allow us to explore and enjoy the Canal today. Here is some history, and tips for enjoying the canal. [Read more…] about 200 Years of Erie Canal History (1825-2025)
Lock Tenders Tribute Monument Dedicated
The final six sculptures in the Lock Tenders Tribute Monument in Lockport, Niagara County, NY were installed and a formal dedication took place in September.
Lewiston sculptor Susan Geissler created the cast bronze figures to recreate an original photograph taken on the same steps in 1897 by Frank Bernard Clench (F.B. Clench). [Read more…] about Lock Tenders Tribute Monument Dedicated
The Struggle to Integrate Lockport’s Schools
On this episode of A New York Minute in History, Devin Lander and Lauren Roberts discuss the Mossell family in Western New York, and their efforts to successfully integrate the Niagara County city of Lockport’s public schools in the late 19th century — nearly 80 years before legal segregation ended nationwide. [Read more…] about The Struggle to Integrate Lockport’s Schools
Seeps Keep Erie Canal, Glens Falls Feeder Canal Levels Lower
The New York State Canal Corporation has announced that water levels this navigation season in the Erie Canal between Lock E-30 (Macedon) and Locks E-34/35 (Lockport) will be consistent with levels maintained throughout 2022 – approximately one foot lower than historic levels. [Read more…] about Seeps Keep Erie Canal, Glens Falls Feeder Canal Levels Lower