National Register of Historic Places listings in Buffalo, New York facts for kids
Buffalo, New York, is a city full of amazing history! Many of its buildings and places are so special that they are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This is like a national list of important places that are worth protecting because of their history or unique design.
There are 246 historic places in Erie County, New York. Buffalo itself is home to 169 of these incredible spots! Let's explore some of them.
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What are Historic Places?
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of buildings, districts, objects, sites, and structures in the United States that are important in American history, architecture, archaeology, engineering, and culture. When a place is added to this list, it means it's recognized for its special value and efforts are made to preserve it.
Buffalo's Amazing History
Buffalo has a rich past, and you can see it everywhere you look! From grand old buildings to beautiful parks, many places tell stories of how the city grew and changed. These historic sites help us understand what life was like long ago and why Buffalo is such a unique place today.
Cool Historic Buildings in Buffalo
Buffalo has many different types of historic buildings. Here are some of the most interesting ones:
Buildings for Learning and Fun
- The Albright-Knox Art Gallery (opened in 1905) is a famous place to see modern art.
- The Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society Building was built for the big Pan-American Exposition in 1901. It's now a museum where you can learn about local history.
- Buffalo Public School No. 24 (built in 1901) was special because it was one of the first schools in the city to offer classes for students with special needs in the 1930s.
- The Buffalo Seminary is a girls' school that started in the mid-1800s. Its beautiful building was built in 1909.
- The Buffalo Tennis and Squash Club has a clubhouse built in 1915-1916 where people have played sports for over a century.
- Fosdick-Masten Park High School (built 1912-1914) is a grand public high school building.
- The Garret Club is a former clubhouse built in 1929.
- Lafayette High School (built 1901-1903) is another historic public high school.
- School 13 (built in 1915) was a former school building.
- Shea's Buffalo Theater (opened in 1926) was once a grand movie palace. Now, it's known as the Shea's Performing Arts Center.
- The U.S. Post Office (built 1897-1901) was once the main post office for Buffalo. Today, it's part of Erie Community College.
- The Young Men's Christian Association Central Building (built 1901-1902) was home to one of the oldest YMCA chapters in North America.
Homes of Important People
- The Robert T. Coles House and Studio is an interesting modern home designed by a famous African-American architect. He built it so the back faced the street, expecting the street to get bigger!
- The William Dorsheimer House (built in 1868) was designed by the famous architect Henry Hobson Richardson.
- The Rev. J. Edward Nash Sr. House (built in 1892) is a beautiful Queen Anne style home.
- The D. D. Martin House Complex was designed by the world-famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It's a collection of buildings that show his unique style.
- The Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site is the house where Theodore Roosevelt became President of the United States in 1901 after President William McKinley was assassinated.
Buildings that Helped the City Grow
- The 20th Century Club (founded in 2011) was the first club in the U.S. started by women, for women.
- The Alling & Cory Buffalo Warehouse (built in 2010) is a historic warehouse.
- The American Grain Complex (built in 2012) is a large grain storage facility.
- The American Radiator Company Factory Complex (built starting in the 1890s) was a major factory and research center. It has now been turned into apartments!
- The Berkeley Apartments (built 1894-1897) is an early building made of reinforced concrete.
- Buffalo City Hall (completed in 1931) is a classic 32-story Art Deco building. It's where the city government works.
- The Buffalo Electric Vehicle Company Building (built in 1910) was once a factory and showroom for early electric cars.
- The Buffalo Gas Light Company Works has remains of a gas factory built in 1848.
- The Buffalo Meter Company Building (built in 2012) is another historic industrial building.
- The Buffalo Milk Company Building (built in 1905) was the first place in Buffalo to use new methods to make milk safe, like homogenization and pasteurization.
- The Buffalo Smelting Works (built in 2011) is a historic industrial site.
- The Buffalo Trunk Manufacturing Company Building (built in 2010) was a factory for making trunks.
- The F.N. Burt Company Factory (built in 2013) is a historic factory building.
- The Calumet (built in 2010) is a historic building in downtown Buffalo.
- The Concrete-Central Elevator (built 1915-1917) was a huge building used to store grain. It operated until 1973.
- The Connecticut Street Armory (built in 1899) was an armory for the United States National Guard.
- The County and City Hall (built 1871-1875) is a grand granite building that served as a courthouse.
- The Harlow C. Curtiss Building (built in 1912) is an old office building.
- The General Electric Tower (built in 1912) is a beautiful office building designed in the Beaux-Arts style.
- The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company Warehouse (built in 1917) was the main warehouse for the first nationwide grocery store in the U.S.
- The E.M. Hager & Sons Company Building (built in 1878) is one of the few old planing mills left in the city.
- The Hotel Lafayette (built in 2010) is a historic hotel.
- The Houk Manufacturing Company (built in 2014) is a historic factory complex.
- The E. & B. Holmes Machinery Company Building (built in 2009) was a factory that made machinery for making barrels.
- The Huyler Building (built in 2012) is a historic building.
- The Kamman Building (built in 2010) is another historic building on Seneca Street.
- The H. A. Meldrum Company Building (built in 2013) was once home to a department store in the early 1900s.
- The C. W. Miller Livery Stable (built in 2007) is a multi-story stable from the late 1800s.
- The New York Central Terminal (built in 1984) was once the main train station for the New York Central Railroad.
- The Packard Motor Car Showroom and Storage Facility (built in 1926) was designed by famous architect Albert Kahn.
- The Parkside Candy Shoppe and Factory (built in 2015) is a working candy shop from the late 1920s that still makes its own candy today!
- The Pierce Arrow Factory Complex (built around 1906) was where the famous Pierce-Arrow cars were made.
- The Prudential Building (built in 1894) is one of the earliest skyscrapers ever built, designed by famous architects Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler.
- The Robertson–Cataract Electric Building (built in 2012) is a historic building downtown.
- The Saturn Club (opened in 1922) is a Tudor Revival style clubhouse.
- The Sibley and Holmwood Candy Factory and Witkop and Holmes Headquarters (built in 2014) is a well-preserved factory building that has been turned into apartments.
- The Sinclair, Rooney & Co. Building (built in 1909) was a factory designed to be flexible for different types of manufacturing.
- The Taylor Signal Company-General Railway Signal Company (built in 2014) is a historic industrial site.
- The Tishman Building (built in 2012) is a historic building in Lafayette Square.
- The Trico Plant No. 1 (built in 2001) was one of the first factories to make windshield wipers. It's a great example of an early "Daylight Factory" with lots of windows.
- The Turner Brothers' Building–American Household Storage Company (built in 2013) is a historic storage building.
- The Wayne and The Waldorf Apartments (built in 2014) are some of the only remaining apartment buildings from the early 1900s that were built for middle-class families.
- The M. Wile and Company Factory Building (built in 1924) is another early example of a "Daylight Factory."
- The Wollenberg Grain and Seed Elevator (built in 1912) was a "country style" grain elevator. Sadly, it was destroyed by fire in 2006.
- The Zink Block (built in 2010) is a historic building on Connecticut Street.
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Places of Worship
- The Blessed Trinity Roman Catholic Church Buildings (built 1923-1928) are known for their beautiful mosaics.
- The Delaware Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church (built 1871-1876) is a historic church now home to Righteous Babe Records.
- The Durham Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church (built in 1920) is an historic African American brick church.
- The Hellenic Orthodox Church of the Annunciation (built in 1906) was originally the North Presbyterian Church.
- The Macedonia Baptist Church (built in 1845) is an important African American Baptist church.
- The Richmond Avenue Methodist-Episcopal Church (built 1885-1898) is made of Medina sandstone and is now the Upper West Side Arts Center.
- St. Andrew's Episcopal Church (built in 2010) is a historic church.
- The St. Andrew's Evangelical Lutheran Church Complex (built 1859-1892) includes a church, parish house, and school.
- The St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Parish Complex (built in 2009) is a historic church complex.
- St. Paul's Cathedral (built 1849-1851) is the cathedral for the Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, designed by Richard Upjohn.
- The Sts. Peter and Paul Orthodox Church Complex (built in 2015) is the oldest Orthodox church in Buffalo and one of the oldest in its diocese.
- The Trinity Episcopal Church (built 1884-1886) has beautiful stained glass windows designed by famous artists like John LaFarge and Tiffany studios.
- The University Presbyterian Church (built in 2015) has an unusual V-shape and was one of the first churches to reach out to the growing suburbs.
Parks and Outdoor Spaces
- The Buffalo Zoo Entrance Court (built in 2013) has surviving work from an early African-American architect.
- The Cazenovia Park-South Park System (built in 1982) is a system of parks and parkways in South Buffalo. It includes the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens.
- The Delaware Park-Front Park System (built in 1982) connects many city neighborhoods and important places like the Albright-Knox Art Gallery and the Buffalo Zoo.
- Forest Lawn Cemetery (founded in 1849) is a large, historic cemetery.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Park (built in 1982) is home to the Buffalo Museum of Science and was designed by the famous landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted.
- Riverside Park (built in 1982) is a park in northwest Buffalo with great views of the Niagara River.
Boats and Lighthouses
- The Buffalo Main Light (established in 1833) was a lighthouse that helped guide ships. It stopped being used in 1914.
- The Buffalo North Breakwater South End Light (lit in 1903) was a beacon that was removed in 1985.
- The sloop CLARA BROWN (built in 2013) is a special boat designed for races on Lake Champlain.
- The fireboat EDWARD M. COTTER (built in 1900) is a historic fireboat that was rebuilt in 1953.
- The South Buffalo North Side Light (installed in 1903) was another light that helped ships. It was removed in 1985 and is now at the Dunkirk Lighthouse and Veterans Park Museum.
- The submarine USS CROAKER (launched in 1943) is a Gato class submarine that you can visit!
- The destroyer USS THE SULLIVANS (launched in 1943) is a Fletcher class destroyer that is also a museum ship.
Historic Neighborhoods
Some areas in Buffalo are so historic that entire neighborhoods are listed as "historic districts." This means many buildings in that area are important together.
- The Allentown Historic District (listed in 1980) includes parks designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and hundreds of historic buildings.
- The Delaware Avenue Historic District (listed in 1974) was once known as "Millionaires' Mile" because of the grand homes there.
- The Elmwood Historic District–East (listed in 2016) and Elmwood Historic District–West (listed in 2012) are early suburban neighborhoods that grew along trolley lines.
- The Fargo Estate Historic District (listed in 2016) developed quickly with middle-class homes after a large estate was taken down.
- The Hamlin Park Historic District (listed in 2013) became home to many middle-class African-Americans.
- The Market Street Historic District (listed in 2011) is in the Black Rock area.
- The Parkside East Historic District (listed in 1986) and Parkside West Historic District (listed in 1986) are middle-class neighborhoods that grew between 1876 and 1940.
- The Prospect Hill Historic District (listed in 2016) was built over a century starting in the 1860s and was home to many successful Italian Americans.
- The University Park Historic District (listed in 2011) is another historic neighborhood.
- The West Village Historic District (listed in 1980) has many single-family homes and apartment buildings built between 1854 and 1914.
Images for kids
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33-61 Emerson Place Row
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J.N. Adam-AM&A Historic District
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American Radiator Company Factory Complex
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Annunciation School
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Birge-Horton House.JPG
Birge-Horton House
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Buffalo Meter Company Building
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Buffalo State Asylum for the Insane
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Buffalo Trunk Manufacturing Company Building
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Concordia Cemetery
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Corpus Christi R. C. Church Complex.JPG
Corpus Christi R. C. Church Complex
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Dayton House
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Edward A. Diebolt House
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Eberz House
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Engine House No. 2 and Hook and Ladder No. 9
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Engine House No. 28
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First Unitarian Church of Buffalo
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House at 218 Dearborn Street
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James and Fanny How House
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Edgar W. Howell House
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Edwin M. and Emily S. Johnston House
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The Karnak Flats
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Col. William Kelly House
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Kensington Gardens Apartment Complex
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Kleinhans Music Hall
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Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church
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Laurel and Michigan Avenues Row
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The Mentholatum Company Building
The Mentholatum Company Building
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Parke Apartments
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Public School No. 60
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Public School No. 63
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The Rae Flats and The Raleigh
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St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church Complex
St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church Complex
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St. Theresa's Roman Catholic Church Complex
St. Theresa's Roman Catholic Church Complex
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St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Church Complex
St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Church Complex
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Stone Farmhouse
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Woodlawn Avenue Row
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National Register of Historic Places listings in Buffalo, New York Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.