The Buffalo History Museum (founded as the Buffalo Historical Society, and later named the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society) is located at 1 Museum Court (formerly 25 Nottingham Court)
in
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...
, just east of Elmwood Avenue and off of Nottingham Terrace, north of the
Scajaquada Expressway, in the northwest corner of
Delaware Park.
History
The building that houses the Buffalo History Museum was constructed in 1901 as the New York State pavilion for that year's
Pan-American Exposition
The Pan-American Exposition was a World's Fair held in Buffalo, New York, United States, from May 1 through November 2, 1901. The fair occupied of land on the western edge of what is now Delaware Park, extending from Delaware Avenue to Elmwood A ...
, and is the sole surviving permanent structure from the exposition. As planned, the Buffalo Historical Society moved into the building after the exposition.
Designed by Buffalo architect
George Cary (1859–1945), its south portico is meant to evoke the
Parthenon
The Parthenon (; grc, Παρθενών, , ; ell, Παρθενώνας, , ) is a former temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, that was dedicated to the goddess Athena during the fifth century BC. Its decorative sculptures are considere ...
in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
. The building was designated a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in 1987.
[ and ]
Founded in 1862, the Buffalo Historical Society's first president was
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore (January 7, 1800March 8, 1874) was the 13th president of the United States, serving from 1850 to 1853; he was the last to be a member of the Whig Party while in the White House. A former member of the U.S. House of Represen ...
. Its exhibits, programs, and events are attended by schoolchildren, families, and students. It has hosted observances of
Lincoln's Birthday
Lincoln's Birthday is a legal, public holiday in some U.S. states, observed on the anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth on February 12, 1809 in Hodgenville (Hodgensville, Hodgen's Mill), Kentucky.Cal. Gov. Code 6700(c) Connecticut, Illinois, ...
for over a century.
From 1879 to 1947, the Society published pioneering scholarship on the people, events, and history of the Niagara Frontier. Many of those volumes are now online in full text.
In 1960, the Buffalo Historical Society changed its name to the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, and on October 25, 2012, the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society announced it was rebranding itself as The Buffalo History Museum.
Exhibits
All three floors of the building offer exhibits, including the Rotary Gallery (featuring elaborate model trains), the Pioneer Gallery, the Erie County Room, the State Court, the Community Gallery, Native American Gallery, Neighbors, and ICONS. A recreation of
Tim Russert
Timothy John Russert (May 7, 1950 – June 13, 2008) was an American television journalist and lawyer who appeared for more than 16 years as the longest-serving moderator of NBC's ''Meet the Press''. He was a senior vice president at NBC News, Wa ...
's office opened in October 2014 after having been installed at the
Newseum
The Newseum was an American museum dedicated to news and journalism that promoted free expression and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, while tracing the evolution of communication.
The purpose of the museum, funded by the ...
in Washington, D.C. On view by appointment in the Museum's Resource Center on Forest Avenue is the gun used by
Leon F. Czolgosz
Leon Frank Czolgosz ( , ; May 5, 1873 – October 29, 1901) was an American laborer and anarchist who assassinated President William McKinley on September 6, 1901, in Buffalo, New York. The president died on September 14 after his wound became ...
to shoot President
William McKinley
William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...
at the Exposition's
Temple of Music
The Temple of Music was a concert hall and auditorium built for the Pan-American Exposition which was held in Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, New York (state), New York in 1901. President of the United States, United States President William McKinley ...
on September 6, 1901.
In November 2017, the Buffalo History Museum opened the ''Icons: The Makers and Moments of Buffalo Sports'' exhibit''. ''The new exhibit explores Buffalo New York's rich sports history and investigates the unique connection between fans and the beloved teams and sports idols of the area. Highlights include Ralph Wilson's hall of fame jacket, the only helmet Scott Norwood ever wore during his career as a Buffalo Bill, and a changing exhibit currently featuring the Buffalo Beauts.
Research Library
Of particular interest to historians, genealogists, researchers, and house history buffs are the collections of the Research Library. Notable collections include:
*The
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore (January 7, 1800March 8, 1874) was the 13th president of the United States, serving from 1850 to 1853; he was the last to be a member of the Whig Party while in the White House. A former member of the U.S. House of Represen ...
Papers
*The
Peter Buell Porter
Peter Buell Porter (August 14, 1773 – March 20, 1844) was an American lawyer, soldier and politician who served as United States Secretary of War from 1828 to 1829.
Early life
Porter was born on August 14, 1773, one of six children born to Dr. ...
Papers
*The
Mary Burnett Talbert
Mary Burnett Talbert (born Mary Morris Burnett; September 17, 1866 – October 15, 1923) was an American orator, activist, suffragist and reformer. In 2005, Talbert was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
Career
Mary Morris Burn ...
papers
*The
Larkin Company
The Larkin Company, also known as the Larkin Soap Company, was a company founded in 1875 in Buffalo, New York as a small soap factory. It grew tremendously throughout the late 1800s and into the first quarter of the 1900s with an approach called ...
records and memorabilia
*The
Pan-American Exposition
The Pan-American Exposition was a World's Fair held in Buffalo, New York, United States, from May 1 through November 2, 1901. The fair occupied of land on the western edge of what is now Delaware Park, extending from Delaware Avenue to Elmwood A ...
collection
*Maris B. Pierce's papers
Additional resources include:
*100,000 artifacts
*20,000 books
*200,000 photographs
*50,000 plans
*Drawings
*Maps
*Posters
*Prints
*Broadsides
*6,500 microfilms of newspapers
*Church records
*Cemetery records
*Censuses
*Pamphlets
*Clippings
In addition there is similar
ephemera
Ephemera are transitory creations which are not meant to be retained or preserved. Its etymological origins extends to Ancient Greece, with the common definition of the word being: "the minor transient documents of everyday life". Ambiguous in ...
that documents the people, places, architecture, organizations, businesses, and events in the Buffalo and Niagara frontier region. A number of detailed bibliographies on popular topics are online at
WorldCat
WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the OCL ...
.
FRANK, the library's growing catalog of 25,000 books and manuscripts, is freely searchable online.
Same-sex wedding memorabilia
In 2011, after the passage of
equal marriage in the State of New York, the Research Library became the first known library in the United States to collect wedding memorabilia from legally wed same-sex couples.
Amateis pediment
The left, center, and right sections of the
pediment
Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape.
Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds.
A pedimen ...
atop the Museum, designed by
Edmond Amateis
Edmond Romulus Amateis (27 February 1897; Rome, Italy – 1 May 1981; Clermont, Florida) was an American sculptor and educator. He is known for garden-figure sculptures, large architectural sculptures for public buildings and portrait busts.
Lif ...
and includes clothed, semi-nude and nude figures.
File:NiehausBuffPed1.jpg
File:NiehausBuffPed2.jpg
File:NiehausBuffPed3.jpg
References
External links
*
History Buffs: The YouTube channel of The Buffalo History MuseumEncyclopedia Americana entry, vol. 3, 1903Buffalo Historical Society, 1930 A short pamphlet illustrated with photographs of museum interiors & exhibits, published to commemorate the expansion of the original 1901 building.
Buffalo Historical Society Publications A list of essays, pamphlets, annual reports, and scholarship, with links to online editions
{{Authority control
National Historic Landmarks in New York (state)
Museums on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state)
Infrastructure completed in 1901
Historical societies in New York (state)
Museums in Buffalo, New York
Architecture of Buffalo, New York
Historical society museums in New York (state)
World's fair architecture in New York (state)
Institutions accredited by the American Alliance of Museums
Photo archives in the United States
National Register of Historic Places in Buffalo, New York
1901 establishments in New York (state)
Research libraries in the United States
Pan-American Exposition