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Little Falls, NY

  • This day in history: August 10

    1755

    A letter from William Shirley, Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, directed Captain Marcus Petri to proceed from the little falls to the “Canoeing Place” from the Mohawk River to the Wood Creek. Petri was to defend the area from incursion of French & Indian forces.

    1876

    Six hundred people left Little Falls and Valley towns, by train, on a grand excursion to the Thousand Islands under the auspices of the Gen. Z. C. Priest Steamer Co. Upon arrival in Clayton, the party will leave immediately on the splendid new steamer, “T. S. Faxion” which has been specially chartered for the excursion on the St. Lawrence River.

    1933

    The whole town seemed congregated on Ann Street in front of the Rialto Theater, anxious to find out who would be the winner of a new automobile given away by local merchants. Mayor Santry, master of ceremonies, presented the auto to Elizabeth Kling of West Main Street.

    1996

    During the annual Canal Days celebration, an estimated 1,500 people toured the newly rebuilt and renovated Benton Hall Academy. A large number of them were former students and senior citizens. They were impressed by its architectural beauty and sensed its historical significance.

  • 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
    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.

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    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
    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.

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    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

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    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
    FIGURE 1.1 General Nicholas Herkimer Home, Herkimer Home State Historic Site. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.FIGURE 1.1 General Nicholas Herkimer Home, Herkimer Home State Historic Site. Photograph © Elizabeth Spraker.

    Echoes of Legacy: General Nicholas Herkimer Home

    July 28, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Beginning today, the Little Falls Historical Society Museum invites you to step inside the story of our community through a new weekly series, Echoes of Legacy.

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    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IMG_3012.jpeg 856 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-07-28 09:37:042026-08-06 06:58:04Echoes of Legacy: General Nicholas Herkimer Home
    Preamble

    Imagine That…We the People of the United States of America

    June 29, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    The concept of our country exists in our imaginations. We are a country formed by imagined truths turned into powerful words that united us in a Revolution

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    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Mohawk-Valley-Today-Upstate-NY.jpeg 750 1200 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-06-29 11:32:042026-06-29 11:35:06Imagine That…We the People of the United States of America
    Church Street Cemetery Vault | Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    Common Burial Ground Monument Dedication Ceremony on June 6th

    June 1, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    This is an open invitation, and all are welcome. We’re looking forward to having you join us!

    Read more
    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Church-Street-Cemetery-Vault.jpg 424 632 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-06-01 07:15:152026-06-02 07:16:13Common Burial Ground Monument Dedication Ceremony on June 6th

    Save Summer for Our Children in Little Falls By Rick Hartman

    April 13, 2026/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum

    The Francis Skinner Municipal Swimming Pool in Little Falls, which has been relied upon for generations since it first opened in 1961, is in danger of not opening this summer.

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    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/IMG_1680.jpeg 788 940 Little Falls Historical Society Museum http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Little Falls Historical Society Museum2026-04-13 13:11:242026-04-13 13:11:26Save Summer for Our Children in Little Falls By Rick Hartman
    Source: Никитин, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    Researching Your Family History

    June 26, 2025/by Cheyenne Dorsagno

    Sometimes, it hits you that you’re not just one person. Other people define you, and you define them. We’re all in a network of history.

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    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Research1.jpeg 700 617 Cheyenne Dorsagno http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Cheyenne Dorsagno2025-06-26 07:02:232025-06-26 07:02:27Researching Your Family History
    Rialto was Little Falls’ movie palace

    Rialto memories

    February 27, 2025/by Mat Rapacz

    When preparing to write this article, I asked readers for their memories of the Rialto and received the following replies.

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    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/IMG_6641.jpeg 857 1200 Mat Rapacz http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Mat Rapacz2025-02-27 07:40:022025-02-27 07:40:05Rialto memories
    Rialto was Little Falls’ movie palace

    Rialto was Little Falls’ movie palace

    February 6, 2025/by Mat Rapacz

    The Gateway Theatre in Little Falls, later to be renamed Rialto, first opened its doors to the public on October 22, 1923.

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    https://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/IMG_6641.jpeg 857 1200 Mat Rapacz http://littlefallshistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Little-Falls-Historical-Society-Museum.png Mat Rapacz2025-02-06 07:47:412025-02-06 07:47:42Rialto was Little Falls’ movie palace
    Page 1 of 212

    Explore our history

    • 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
    • Charles P Colby
      A Capacity For AchievementMay 7, 2026 - 7:35 am
    • Fort Herkimer Church
      Patriots Day Event Saturday, May 16, at the Fort Herkimer ChurchMay 5, 2026 - 8:55 am

    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

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    OPEN SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11, 9-2
    OPEN FOR CHRISTMAS IN LITTLE FALLS ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13TH

    Explore the history of the Mohawk Valley

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