Table of Contents
Introduction xiii
Region 1 Western New York
Including pans of Allegany, Chautauqua, Erie, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, and Steuben Counties
1 Angelica: "Roque Is the Name of the Game" 3
2 Avoca: "A Night on the Rails" 7
3 Belfast: "The Champion's Barns" 11
4 Buffalo: "The Birthplace of the Buffalo Chicken Wing" 16
5 Buffalo: "The Oldest Active Fireboat in the World" 20
6 Canisteo: "The World's Largest Living Sign" 24
7 Chautauqua: "The Queen of the Lake" 28
8 Dansville: "Upstate's Angel of Mercy" 32
9 Dunkirk: "The First Shots of the War of 1812" 36
10 East Aurora: "America's Five-and-Dime Store" 40
11 Irondequoit: "America's Oldest Miniature Golf Course" 44
12 Jamestown: "I Love Lucy" 48
13 Lackawanna: "A Church for Father Baker" 54
14 Lockport: "The Flight of Five" 59
15 Mayville: "Oh If These Walls Could Only Talk" 63
16 Westfield: "The President's Whiskers" 67
Region 2 Finger Lakes
Including parts of Cayuga, Chemung, Onondaga, Ontario, Seneca, Wayne, and Yates Counties
17 Auburn: "The Moses of Her People" 73
18 Canandaigua: "The Chosen Spot" 77
19 Horseheads: "Zim's Bandstand" 81
20 Lyons: "The Oldest Movie and Stage Theater in Upstate" 85
21 Penn Yan: "The World's Largest Pancake Griddle" 89
22 Phelps: "America's Only Two-Story Brick Outhouse" 93
23 Seneca Falls: "It's a Wonderful Life" 98
24 Skaneateles: "A Jolly Olde Tyme" 103
25 Skaneateles: "The Mail Must Go Through" 107
26 Waterloo: "We Will Never Forget" 111
27 Wolcott: "An Eerie Moonscape along Sodus Bay" 115
Region 3 Central New York
Including parts of Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Fulton, Herkimer, Madison, Montgomery, Oneida, Onondaga, Otsego, and Schoharie Counties
28 Amsterdam: "The Ragman's Son" 121
29 Auriesville: "The Church of Seventy-Two Doors" 127
30 Bainbridge: "Stick with Us" 132
31 Binghamton; "Walking Distance" 136
32 Canajoharie: "The Last of the Dummy Lights" 141
33 Cardiff: "America's Greatest Hoax" 145
34 Cherry Valley: "Drums along the Mohawk" 150
35 Chittenango: "Follow the Yellow Brick Road" 154
36 Cooperstown: "America's Oldest Covered Bridge" 159
37 Cooperstown: "A Mighty Fine Guy" 164
38 Cortland: "Upstate's 'Nashville of the North'" 168
39 Danube: "The Oldest Missionary Church in New York" 172
40 Elmira: "The Battle at Sullivan's Mountain" 177
41 Elmira: "The Birthplace of Huckleberry Finn" 181
42 Georgetown: "Built by Spiritual Hands" 186
43 Gilboa: "The Oldest Trees on Earth" 189
44 Hamilton: "A Sweet Commemoration" 193
45 Homer: "New York's Biggest Pair of Pants" 197
46 Howe's Cave: "New York's Favorite Hole in the Ground" 201
47 Johnstown: "The Oldest Active Courthouse in New York State" 205
48 Middleburgh: "The Land of Tim Murphy" 209
49 Oneida: "The World's Smallest Church" 213
50 Oneonta: "The Largest Indoor Barbecue Pit in the East" 216
51 Oneonta: "A Railroad Icon" 220
52 Pindars Corners: "The Senator's Schoolhouse" 224
53 Rome: "Fill 'er Up!" 229
54 Sharon Springs: "Springs Village of Schoharie County" 233
55 Sherrill: "Free Love" 238
56 South Otselic: "An American Tragedy" 243
57 Syracuse: "The Shot (Clock) Heard Around the World" 248
58 Syracuse: "Green over Red" 252
59 Unadilla: "The Pride of the Village Beautiful" 257
60 Van Hornesville: "A Truly Remarkable Rural School" 261
Region 4 Catskills, Hudson Valley, Capital District
Including parts of Albany, Delaware, Dutchess, Orange, Rensselaer. Saratoga, Schenectady, Sullivan, Ulster, Washington, Westchester, and Rockland Counties
61 Albany: "Upstate's Most Beautiful Firehouse" 267
62 Albany: "His Master's Voice" 272
63 Andes: "Lead Can't Penetrate Steele" 276
64 Grafton: "Na-Mu-Myo-Ho-Ren-Ge-Kyo" 280
65 Hancock: "Eddie Murphy: The Last Honest Man" 284
66 Hoosick Falls: "Anyone Can Paint" 288
67 Mechanicville: "First Union Casualty of the Civil War" 293
68 Monticello: "The Bagel Capital of New York" 298
69 Mt. Tremper: "Jewels in a Catskill Silo" 303
70 New Paltz: "The Oldest Authentic Street in New York State" 308
71 New Windsor: "The First Purple Heart" 312
72 Ossining: "Up the River to the Big House" 316
73 Phoenicia: "On the Wings of Eagles" 320
74 Pomona: "America's Oldest Family Fruit Farm" 325
75 Highland and Poughkeepsie: "A Walk in the Clouds" 328
76 Prattsville: "America's First Civil War Monument" 332
77 Rensselaer: "The Birthplace of Yankee Doodle Dandy" 336
78 Salem: "The Old Burying Ground" 340
79 Saratoga Springs: "The Oldest Sporting Venue in America" 344
80 Schenectady: "The Oldest Barber Shop in New York State" 348
81 Schenectady: "Lawrence the Indian" 352
82 Schenectady: "The City (and Sign) that Lights the World" 356
83 Sleepy Hollow: "Tales of Sleepy Hollow" 360
84 Stamford: "A Watcher in the Woods" 366
85 Tappan: "Oldest Tavern in America" 370
86 Troy: "The Idea for the Ferris Wheel?" 374
87 Washingtonville: "America's Oldest Winery" 378
88 Wilton: "Grant's Last View" 383
Region 5 North Country and Adirondacks
Including parts of Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Oswego, St. Lawrence, Warren, and Washington Counties
89 Cape Vincent: "America's Oldest Family-Run Ferry" 391
90 Gouverneur: "The World's Largest Roll of Life Savers" 396
91 Lake Placid: "God Bless America" 400
92 Malone: "Little House in the North Country" 405
93 North Creek: "Welcome Aboard, Mr. President" 409
94 Oswego: "The Last Active U.S. Army D-Day Invasion Ship" 413
95 Potsdam: "Upstate History Written in Stone" 417
96 Sackets Harbor: "Defender of the North" 421
97 Saranac Lake: "Little Red" 426
98 Watertown: "Oldest Indoor Shopping Mall in the United States" 431
99 Whitehall: "Birthplace of the American Navy" 436
100 Wilmington: "America's First Theme Park" 440
Index 445