Little Falls Historical Society Museum Events
This day in history: March 23
1928
The Slovenian Home, first formed in 1905 as a cultural, social, and beneficial society, became incorporated under New York State law on this date. The members had immigrated to Little Falls from the Slovenia area of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
1984
Leon Dussault, born in Little Falls in 1895, and co-owner of the “Journal & Courier” printing company, died on this date. Mr. Dussault founded the Little Falls Symphony Orchestra in 1927, and conducted the exceptional ensemble of local and area musicians through its final concert in 1971. National and international acclaimed performers frequently appeared with the orchestra.
This day in history: March 24
1791
Elbana Williams offered a resolution to the State Legislature to make a survey around the rapids in the Mohawk River.
1842
As of this date, Little Falls has 3,000 population, 40 stores, 2 printing offices, 5 hotels, 1 bank, 5 churches, numerous schools, – the manufacturies consists of 2 paper mills, 3 paper mills, 2 saw mills, 3 foundries, 1 machine shop, 1 sash factory, 1 axe factory, 1 woolen factory, 1 clothing factory, 1 distillery, 1 brewery, 1 plasster mill, 2 trip-hammers, and numerous factories in the n=manufacture of Copper, cabinets, carriages etc.
1894
A. M. Kinney, dealer in horses, will have two car loads of horses for sale today.
This day in history: March 26
1993
The former Andy’s Grill on Loomis Street, a long-time bar and meeting place in the Manheim section of Little Falls, is no more. As a part of Urban Renewal, the property has been turned into a residence for which applications are being made from first-time home owners.
This day in history: March 27
1885
The “Wang Sing Chinese Laundry,” was started in the Fleming block on the corner of South Second and Albany Streets. Shortly afterwards a second Chinese laundry started in Little Falls.
1907
The first train station in Little Falls will soon be razed. The station is located between West John Street and the railroad tracks near the “Flatiron” building which holds the office for the S.F. Jones Coal Company.
1942
WW II Era – The FBI said 3,637 aliens had registered in Herkimer County including 1,128 “enemy aliens,” 950 from Italy, 146 from Germany, and 32 from Romania and Hungary. The Little Falls Post Office had issued certificates of identification to all aliens of enemy nationalities age 14 and older. Police confiscated radios, cameras, and firearms.
Morgan’s Dairy by Bart Carrig
/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum“Around the back and up the stairs…” That’s how our mornings began.
The first time I heard that instruction, from my Uncle Morgan Carrig, it was about 5:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning, circa mid-June 1964. My older brother Kevin, who had previously enjoyed all the benefits and privileges of employment as a milk delivery boy for Morgan’s Dairy, was “unavailable” – no doubt due to a Friday night dance at Filipski’s bowling alley on the South Side.
Upon Turning 80 by Ray Lenarcic
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumI never thought about turning 80. Because I hadn’t. But now that I’m about to, I was asked by a friend if there was one word that could describe how I felt about becoming an octogenarian.
Little Falls: Cheese Capital of the World by Diane Ptak
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumSheltered in a deep curved gorge along the main transportation route across New York, Little Falls became a manufacturing leader in the latter half of the 19th century.
The Military Road and the War of 1812 by Pat Stock
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumAfter the American Revolution, many New Englanders moved to New York State – specifically to the Royal Grant that had belonged to Sir William Johnson.
Reflections on the 245th Anniversary of the Battle of Oriskany and Beyond by Jeffrey Gressler
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumTwo years into the Revolutionary War, the British three-prong campaign of 1777 sought to seize New York’s waterways and thus divide New England from the rest of the colonies.
The Quirks of Fate – Battle of Oriskany by Ray Lenarcic
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumI was asked recently my a friend- “Who are your heroes?” I answered based on my understanding that a hero is a person(s) whose effort or achievement goes way beyond the expected to the point of deserving to be memorialized for decades or even longer.
Growing Up on The Southside 1957 – 1970 by Gary T. Staffo
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumFor the past 8 years I have had the privilege of conducting a history and storytelling tour, “Growing Up on The Southside 1957 – 1970.”
It is important to understand how and why this tour started. It was to have a better understanding of why the “Southside” of Little Falls, NY has such a very special and perhaps unique place in the hearts of each and all who have had the privilege of growing up there during the “baby boomers” period, and those who followed, up until perhaps the late 1970s, when it’s aura and special ethnic qualities faded away.