Olean, New York facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Olean, New York
City
Lincoln Park in Olean
Olean, New York Location in New York Show map of New York Olean, New York Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Cattaraugus
Government
• Type	Mayor-Council
Area
• Total	6.17 sq mi (15.97 km2)
• Land	5.90 sq mi (15.28 km2)
• Water	0.27 sq mi (0.69 km2)
Population  (2020)
• Total	13,937
• Density	2,362.20/sq mi (912.11/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Zip Code	14760
Area code(s)	716, 585
FIPS code	36-009-54716

Olean (pronounced OH-lee-ann) is a city in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. It's the biggest city in Cattaraugus County. Olean is a key place for business, money, travel, and fun in the area. It's also one of the main cities in the Southern Tier part of Western New York.

The city is surrounded by the town of Olean. You can find it in the southeastern part of Cattaraugus County.

History of Olean

Early Days and First Settlers

The first European to visit this area might have been Joseph de La Roche Daillon. He was a missionary and explorer from Canada. Around 1632, La Roche reported seeing oil near Cuba. This was the first time petroleum was noted in North America.

At that time, the area was home to the Wenro Indians. They were an Iroquois-speaking group. In 1643, the Wenro tribes faced tough conflicts.

Europeans first settled here around 1765. They called the place "Ischua," which was an Indian name. The British had said this land was for Native Americans. This was after they won the French and Indian War.

The land is hilly, with high points about 500 to 600 feet above the Allegheny River valley. During the American Revolutionary War, a path was made in 1779. This path led to what is now Olean.

How Olean Got Its Name

The whole area of Cattaraugus County was first called the Town of Olean in 1808. Over time, parts of it were separated to form other towns.

The area didn't have many people until 1804. That's when Major Adam Hoops bought the land. He was a surveyor and a veteran of the Revolutionary War. Hoops was also connected to Robert Morris, who helped fund the Revolution. Hoops and Morris worked with the Holland Land Company. This company was settling land in western New York.

This was a time when many people were moving west to places like Ohio and Indiana. Travel was mostly by cart or small boat. The Allegheny River was a major route for transportation. Hoops thought a big city could grow where the Allegheny River met one of its smaller streams.

In 1804, he found the spot where Olean Creek meets the river. This spot was important because it was the farthest point downstream in New York State before reaching the Seneca Reservation. Hoops bought 20,000 acres from the Holland Land Company. His brother, Robert, built the first permanent building there. They first called the area Hamilton, after Alexander Hamilton.

In 1804, Hoops wrote a letter about the name Olean. He got the name from the nearby Oil Springs and the Latin word oleum, which means oil. The Post Office first called the new town "Olean Point." By 1823, county maps just called it Olean.

In 1854, Olean officially became a village. Then, in 1893, it became a city.

Timber and Railroads

Adam Hoops' dream of a huge city like Buffalo or Pittsburgh didn't quite come true. But Olean still grew and became the main town in the region. It grew quickly as a place for people to stop who were traveling down the Allegheny River to Ohio. For a while, Olean was even bigger and more famous than Buffalo.

This changed when big canals were built, like the Erie Canal in 1825. The Allegheny River was often too shallow for large steamboats. A canal called the Genesee Valley Canal was extended to Olean in 1862. But it became old-fashioned even before it opened because railroads were becoming popular.

Timber was a huge business in New York and Pennsylvania from 1830 to 1850. Olean was the main timber town back then. After river travel became less common, Olean became a hub for railroads. Many railroads crossed through the town, and this is still true today with the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad.

Olean was home to several companies. In the late 1800s, it had mills, a bicycle company, and a glass factory. St. Bonaventure University was started just outside town in 1858.

Oil and Prohibition Era

Oil was first found in this region by a French explorer in 1632. But it became important for business during the Pennsylvania oil rush. Oil made Olean famous for about 50 years.

Olean became a center for oil transportation by railroad and pipeline. The New York office of Standard Oil (called Socony) was based here. Oil from nearby areas was brought to Olean to be shipped by train. For a short time, Olean was the world's largest oil storage area. It even had a "tank city" full of oil tanks. A pipeline was also built to connect Olean to Standard Oil refineries in Bayonne, New Jersey. The oil business stayed in Olean until 1954. That was also the year Olean's population was at its highest.

An oil executive from Olean, Frank W. Higgins, became the governor of New York from 1905 to 1907. Olean is one of the few smaller cities in New York State to have been home to a governor.

During Prohibition (from the 1920s to 1933), it was illegal to make or sell alcohol. Olean became known as a major stop for "bootlegging" routes. This meant people illegally transported and sold alcohol. Local stories say that famous mobsters, like Al Capone from Chicago, visited Olean. Because of its connection to these activities, Olean was sometimes called "Little Chicago" in the news.

Olean Today

In September 1968, Olean was the first city in the United States to put video cameras along its main business street to help fight crime.

Today, Olean is still the largest city in Cattaraugus County. Its population was highest in the mid-1950s, with about 25,000 people. Now, the population is around 15,000.

Geography and Climate

Olean is located in the southeastern part of Cattaraugus County. Its exact location is 42°4′57″N 78°25′51″W / 42.08250°N 78.43083°W / 42.08250; -78.43083.

The city covers a total area of about 6.2 square miles (16.0 km²). Most of this is land (5.9 square miles (15.3 km²)), and a small part is water (0.27 square miles (0.7 km²)).

Olean is where Olean Creek flows into the Allegheny River. The Southern Tier Expressway (Interstate 86 and New York State Route 17) runs along the northern edge of the city. New York State Route 417 goes east–west through Olean, and it crosses New York State Route 16, which is a north–south highway.

Weather in Olean

Olean has a cooler humid continental climate. This is because it's at a higher elevation than some other cities in western New York.

Population of Olean

In 2000, there were 15,347 people living in Olean. About 24.6% of the people were under 18 years old. The average age was 38 years.

Economy and Jobs

Olean is home to several important companies:

• Cutco has its main office and makes all its knives in Olean.
• Dresser-Rand used to have its North American main office here.
• Hysol Corporation, later bought by Dexter Corporation and then Henkel, was a big employer.
• Colonial Radio Group was based in Olean for several years.
• Olean General Hospital is part of a larger health system. It provides healthcare to over 160,000 people in New York and Pennsylvania.
• Olean Wholesale Grocery, a company that supplied groceries to stores, was located near the city. It was bought by another company in 2019.

Education in Olean

Olean has public schools for all ages:

• Two elementary schools: East View Elementary and Washington West Elementary.
• A middle school: Olean Intermediate Middle School.
• Olean High School is the city's public high school.

There is also Archbishop Walsh Academy. This is a Roman Catholic school for students from kindergarten to 12th grade.

For higher education, a branch of Jamestown Community College is in the city. St. Bonaventure University is just a few miles away in the town of Allegany.

Sports in Olean

Bradner Stadium was built in the 1920s. It's a stadium that hosts many events. For many years, it was home to the minor-league baseball team, the Olean Oilers. The Olean Oilers team was restarted in 2012. Now, the Oilers play in the New York Collegiate Baseball League (NYCBL). They won the League Championship in 2015 and 2016.

Before the Oilers, Olean had other minor league baseball teams from 1908 to 1916. The Olean Refiners played in the Class D Interstate League.

Olean is also home to the Southern Tier Diesel. This is an adult amateur football team.

Bradner Stadium is also where the Olean High School football team plays all its home games. They are called the Huskies.

Historic Places to See

Several places in Olean are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This means they are important historical sites. Some of these include:

• Beardsley-Oliver House
• Conklin Mountain House
• Oak Hill Park Historic District
• Olean Armory
• Olean Public Library
• Olean School No. 10
• St. Stephen's Episcopal Church Complex
• Temple B'Nai Israel
• Union and State Streets Historic District
• United States Post Office

The Church of St Mary of the Angels on Henley Street was built in 1915. In 2017, Pope Francis named it a basilica.

Transportation in Olean

Interstate 86 runs east–west along the northern edge of Olean. New York Route 16 goes north from Olean to Buffalo. New York Route 417 heads east from Olean.

In the past, passenger trains used to travel through Olean. The Pennsylvania Railroad had a train called the Buffalo Day Express that went from Washington, D.C., through Olean to Buffalo until 1968. Another railroad, Penn Central, ran a train through Olean until 1971.

Since 2001, the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad has operated train lines through Olean. Their main office is in Olean.

The nearest airports with regular flights for the public are in Erie, Buffalo, and the Elmira area.

Famous People from Olean

Many notable people have connections to Olean:

Sports Stars

• Claude Allen, an Olympic athlete
• Eddie Donovan, a former head coach for the New York Knicks basketball team
• Bob Lanier, a famous basketball player in the Hall of Fame who played for St. Bonaventure University
• John McGraw, a Baseball Hall of Fame player and manager
• Louis Zamperini, a World War II survivor and Olympic competitor

Artists and Entertainers

• Beverly Bower, an opera singer
• Pandora Boxx, a drag queen
• Jeff Fahey, an actor
• Robert Lax, a poet
• Thomas Merton, a religious writer
• Peter Tomarken, host of the game show Press Your Luck

Other Notable People

• Frank W. Higgins, a former governor of New York
• Joe Mayer, who founded the town of Mayer, Arizona
• Larry Trask, a linguist

See also

In Spanish: Olean (Nueva York) para niños

Images for kids

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  Lincoln Park in Olean