Little Falls Historical Society Museum
  • HOME
  • BECOME A MEMBER
  • WRITING SERIES
  • CONTACT US
  • NEWS
    • Mat Rapacz Archives
  • EXHIBITS
    • CURRENT EXHIBITS
    • VIRTUAL EXHIBITS
    • ONGOING EXHIBITS
  • EXPERIENCE LITTLE FALLS HISTORY & HISTORIC ENTRY
    • Audio Tours
    • Echoes of Legacy
    • Historic Homes and Places in Little Falls
  • BOOKS AVAILABLE
  • SUNY ONEONTA’S COOPERSTOWN Graduate Program | Museum Studies
  • HISTORY SUPER SLEUTH
  • FOR THE HISTORIAN
    • Pre-human History – 1500
    • 1490 – 1650
    • 1651 – 1790
    • 1791 – 1870
    • MAKING HISTORY TODAY
      • Student Edition
  • ABOUT US
    • ANNUAL REPORTS
    • Privacy Policy
  • OUR SPONSORS
  • Menu Menu
  • Link to Facebook
  • Link to Instagram
  • Link to Mail

Little Falls, NY

  • This day in history: September 6

    1842

    Father John Shanahan began recording information on baptisms, marriages, and deaths at St. Mary’s parish. He covered an area extending from Tribes Hill to Deerfield and the valley towns to Newport most likely by horseback or horse and buggy.

    1866

    The presidential party, on its tour to Chicago, stopped in Little Falls. President Johnson appeared briefly and gave a short address from the rear platform of the train. General U.S. Grant, Admiral Farragut, William Seward and other notables were in the party.

    1889

    The steam “merry-go-round” is still in operation at the corner of Burrell and Alexander streets and is apparently doing a good business.

    1892

    As of this date, there were twenty-three lawyers in Little Falls.

    1893

    The canal boat “Gilbert Green”, bound to New York from Syracuse, sprang a leak and sank near the Taylor Driving Park with 230 tons of salt on board. The loss of salt is a total one.

    1918

    A military funeral was held at St. Mary’s church for Sergeant Dennis J. Ryan, the first local soldier to die in the service of his country. His body was laid in state at the K. of C. home. The Home Defense fired a last salute over the grave. He died at Fort Lee of a heart condition due to heat exhaustion.

     

  • Many thanks to Louie Baum for his research for This Day in History.

    ALL EXHIBITS

    • 1912 Little Falls Textile Strike
    • 1940 Gulf Curve Train Wreck
    • 240th Anniversary of the Battles of Stone Arabia and Klock’s Field
    • Athletics Wing Collection
    • Battle of West Canada Creek
    • Camp Jolly Exhibit
    • Church Street Cemetery Tour
    • City Hall – A History
    • Distant Drums – Little Falls during the Civil War Era
    • Early Base Ball in Little Falls
    • Early Little Falls Buildings and Organizations
    • First U.S. Cheese Market Exhibit
    • Frog Fountain
    • Herkimer County Bank
    • Little Falls African American History
    • Little Falls Diamonds Collection
    • Little Falls Music Exhibit
    • Little Falls Waterways
    • Little Falls and Women’s Suffrage
    • Making History Today
    • Making History Today Student Edition
    • Massacre at the Little Falls Grist Mill
    • Myjava, Slovakia, Sister City of Little Falls
    • Native American Exhibit
    • Prohibition Exhibit
    • Rockton Exhibit
    • Urban Renewal Exhibit
    • Vietnam War Exhibit
    • World War II and Korean Conflict Exhibit
    “Auld Lang Syne”, a short story with the main character being Dudley Burwell, who was known to the villagers of Little Falls as ”The Hermit of Burwell Hill,” was written in 1903 by Frances Ledyard Haun,, twenty-five years after the death of Burwell

    THE HERMIT OF BURWELL HILL POSTHUMOUS

    August 26, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Two known pieces of Frances Ledyard Haun published literature were: “Auld Lang Syne”, a short story with the main character being Dudley Burwell, known as the Hermit of Burwell Hill.

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/image.jpeg 205 457 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-26 08:16:292026-09-03 13:43:53THE HERMIT OF BURWELL HILL POSTHUMOUS
    FIGURE 2.12 The First Schoolhouse. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.FIGURE 2.12 The First Schoolhouse. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.

    THE FIRST SCHOOLHOUSE

    August 21, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Imagine Church Street in the closing years of the eighteenth century, when Little Falls was still a small settlement surrounded by rugged terrain, scattered homes, mills, and unpaved roads.

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/IMG_3219.jpeg 770 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-21 08:17:082026-08-21 17:19:09THE FIRST SCHOOLHOUSE
    Little Falls Historical Society Mohawk Valley GivesLittle Falls Historical Society Mohawk Valley Gives

    MOHAWK VALLEY GIVES HAS ANNOUNCED SEPTEMBER 18TH AS COMMUNITY-WIDE GIVING DAY

    August 19, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    For the first time, the Little Falls Historical Society has applied for and been accepted as a recipient of 2026 Mohawk Valley Gives donations.

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Square-image-for-MVT-and-MVM.jpeg 1024 1024 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-19 09:02:562026-08-19 09:02:58MOHAWK VALLEY GIVES HAS ANNOUNCED SEPTEMBER 18TH AS COMMUNITY-WIDE GIVING DAY
    FIGURE 2.10 James Sanders Home. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.FIGURE 2.10 James Sanders Home. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.

    JAMES SANDERS HOME

    August 13, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Imagine Garden Street in 1827, when Little Falls was beginning to feel the effects of canal construction, new commerce, and a growing population.

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/IMG_3183.jpeg 900 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-13 11:46:012026-08-13 11:46:03JAMES SANDERS HOME
    FIGURE 2.6 Nathaniel Benton Home. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.FIGURE 2.6 Nathaniel Benton Home. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.

    NATHANIEL BENTON HOME

    August 6, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Imagine Garden Street during the early decades of the nineteenth century, when Little Falls was still growing beyond its earliest settlement.

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/IMG_3087.jpeg 800 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-06 08:26:032026-08-06 08:26:05NATHANIEL BENTON HOME
    The Gateway Theater-The Rialto | The Gateway Theater was built by a group of local businessmen in 1922, who had purchased a lot on North Ann Street, which was where an early pioneer settler, Eben Britton, had long ago operated a tannery. The theater became known as the Rialto Theatre in 1925. | Photo c. 1930

    From the Archives: Gateway Theatre Opens Monday

    August 5, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    From the Little Falls Evening Times Archives – The new Gateway Theatre on North Ann street will be opened to the public next Monday night, and the public has a treat coming. 

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/IMG_2015.jpeg 1181 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-05 07:19:292026-08-05 07:19:31From the Archives: Gateway Theatre Opens Monday
    FIGURE 2.4 David Petrie Home. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.FIGURE 2.4 David Petrie Home. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.

    DAVID PETRIE HOME

    August 3, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Imagine Garden Street in 1825, when Little Falls was still a growing village and the Erie Canal was nearing completion.

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/IMG_3055.jpeg 900 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-03 08:35:242026-08-03 08:35:25DAVID PETRIE HOME
    Federal Style

    The Next Seven Weeks in Echoes of Legacy: Federal Style

    August 3, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Over the next seven weeks, we will step into the Federal era—a period when the young United States was beginning to express its new identity

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/IMG_3057.jpeg 800 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-08-03 07:55:002026-08-03 09:57:10The Next Seven Weeks in Echoes of Legacy: Federal Style

    Explore our history

    • “Auld Lang Syne”, a short story with the main character being Dudley Burwell, who was known to the villagers of Little Falls as ”The Hermit of Burwell Hill,” was written in 1903 by Frances Ledyard Haun,, twenty-five years after the death of Burwell
      THE HERMIT OF BURWELL HILL POSTHUMOUSAugust 26, 2026 - 8:16 am
    • Little Falls Historical Society Mohawk Valley GivesLittle Falls Historical Society Mohawk Valley Gives
      MOHAWK VALLEY GIVES HAS ANNOUNCED SEPTEMBER 18TH AS COMMUNITY-WIDE GIVING DAYAugust 19, 2026 - 9:02 am
    • The Privy and the Pear Tree: Unearthing Little Falls History in Your Own BackyardJuly 15, 2026 - 2:42 pm
    • Francis Skinner Municipal PoolFrancis Skinner Municipal Pool
      More than 150 Donors Help Reopen Francis Skinner Municipal PoolJuly 1, 2026 - 5:00 pm
    • COMMITTEE OF FIVE PRESENTING THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE TO CONGRESS IN 1776.
      THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 1776 – 2026June 26, 2026 - 8:01 am
    • Little Falls Historical Society Membership PicnicJune 5, 2026 - 1:51 pm

    Explore the history of the Mohawk Valley

    Visit MohawkValleyMuseums.us

    Museum Exhibits

    • Little Falls and Women's Suffrage
      Little Falls and Women’s Suffragein: Current Exhibits
    • Rockton Exhibit | Little Falls Historical Society | Little Falls, NY
      Rockton Exhibitin: Current Exhibits
    • Camp Jolly Little Falls Historical Society Museum
      Camp Jolly Exhibitin: Current Exhibits
    • Prohibition Exhibit | Little Falls Historical Society | Little Falls, NY
      Prohibition Exhibitin: Current Exhibits
    • Athletics Wing | Little Falls Historical Society | Little Falls, NY
      Athletics Wing Collectionin: Current Exhibits, Ongoing Exhibits
    • 1940 train wreck | Little Falls Historical Society Museum
      1940 Gulf Curve Train Wreckin: Ongoing Exhibits, Past Exhibits
    • Native American Exhibit | Little Falls Historical Society Museum | Little Falls NY
      Native American Exhibitin: Ongoing Exhibits
    • Little Falls Diamonds Exhibit | Little Falls Historical Society Museum | Little Falls NY
      Little Falls Diamonds Collectionin: Ongoing Exhibits
    • World War II Exhibit | Little Falls Historical Society Museum | Little Falls NY
      World War II and Korean Conflict Exhibitin: Past Exhibits
    • Little Falls Cheese Market | Little Falls Historical Society Museum | Little Falls NY
      First U.S. Cheese Market Exhibitin: Ongoing Exhibits
    • Myjava, Slovakia Exhibitin: Ongoing Exhibits
    • Little Falls Waterwaysin: Past Exhibits

    Explore events happening in the Mohawk Valley

    See what's happening on MohawkValley.Today

    OLD BANK BUILDING MUSEUM HOURS

    By appointment only after October 4, 2025 until May 2026.
    SPECIAL DATES:
    OPEN SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11, 9-2
    OPEN FOR CHRISTMAS IN LITTLE FALLS ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13TH

    Explore the history of the Mohawk Valley

    Visit MohawkValleyMuseums.us
    © Copyright Little Falls Historical Society Museum in New York. All rights reserved. Design by MohawkValley.today
    • Link to Facebook
    • Link to Instagram
    • Link to Mail
    • Home
    • Exhibits
    • Historical Tours
    • Making History Today
    • News
    • Membership
    • About
    • Annual Report
    • Our Sponsors
    Scroll to top Scroll to top Scroll to top