Little Falls Historical Society Museum Events
This day in history: September 8
1843
Daring robberies and thefts are becoming all too common in our village demanding watchmen at the most important points within a short time. Several places have been robbed – most of the transgressions involving watches and jewelry.
1901
About 1800 people attended the pilgrimage of St. Mary’s church to the Auriesville Shrine on the West Shore Railroad.
1908
A contract was awarded to Casey & Murray to construct the Barge Canal (Erie Canal) through Little Falls.
1922
Leon Dussault’s Orchestra and a group local people under the auspices of the American Legion, broadcast from WGY in Schenectady. There were so few radios in Little Falls that groups gathered at places such as the Y.W.C.A. to listen.
This day in history: September 9
1873
The Modoc base ball club of Canajoharie came to Little Falls to play the local “White Stockings” and were “scalped” by a score of 53 to 13. Williams and Selcer each scored 10 runs for the locals.
1917
The banner read – “A war to end wars!” That’s what the first 14 young men from Little Falls thought as they were sworn into the service of the nation and departed for army training camps. They would join millions of humans across the seas locked in a death grip with their foes in World War I.
1987
Work crews tearing up Garden Street between Waverley Place and Salisbury Street unearthed wooden water pipes from a water delivery system that had been discontinued from service over 100 years ago. Several years ago, similar wooden pipes were found during excavation for Shopper’s Square.
This day in history: September 10
1886
The parochial school connected with St. Mary’s church opened with nearly 300 pupils, with their instructions being furnished by four lay teachers. The average for each teacher is too large for the best results, but no more than for Union schools. The large number in students is due in part to child labor laws in our mills.
1889
The new bell for the school house on Church street, weighs 387 pounds. It can be heard nearly anywhere in the village.
1908
The old Gem Theatre in the Beniens block has been closed and the new Gem theatre, with a capacity of 425 on the ground floor and first balcony, has been opened. The natty little new playhouse has been crowded at each of the three nightly performances.
This day in history: September 11
1898
Some boys playing in Foley’s gulf above German Street (Flint Avenue) found curious items in a cavity beneath a large rock. Lumps of silver and babbitt metal, hammers, kettles, ladles, and molds for casting 10, 25, 50, and one-dollar coins. The nature of the find indicated the genuine counterfeit equipment had been in the ground for a long time.
1917
The contractor building the new City Hall, George Willis Company, declared bankruptcy. James Hallinan was engaged to complete the project.
1922
The Little Falls Military Band showed cash receipts of $212.81 and disbursements of $134.41 for Pavement Dances held during the summer of 1922. Four concerts were held with 1,989 tickets being sold at 10 cents each. Popcorn and ice cream sales amounted to $13.91.
My First and Last Train Rides by Ann Eysaman Schuyler
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumIn 1944 I took my first train ride – all the way to Utica, NY. Having lived in Little Falls all my life, some of it on West Main Street at the foot of Glen Avenue, I knew about the railroad.
LOCAL AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY REFLECTED STATE AND NATIONAL EVENTS
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumThe primary purpose of this piece of writing is to chronicle a history of African American presence in Little Falls from the time of slavery up to the 2015 dedication of a monument in Little Falls Church Street Cemetery recognizing what was once known as the “Colored Burial Ground.”
The Underground Railroad In And Around Little Falls
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumThe Underground Railroad (URR) was a loosely organized network of people, (men and women, African American and white,) dedicated to helping people escape from bondage in the slave-holding states of the South to freedom in the antislavery states of the North and ultimately to Canada in the period before the Civil War.
MEMORIAL SERVICE NOTICE FOR ARTHUR WITHINGTON
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumThere will be a Memorial Service for former Little Falls native Annette (Eysaman) Withington’s husband, Arthur, on July 22, 2023, 11am, at the Cornerstone Plymouth Bethesda Church in Utica.
The Main Street in Little Falls, N.Y. , circa 1955 -1965
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumMy father told the story, many times, of how when he was a little boy, his mother had to hold his hand tightly when they made their way downtown to do their shopping on Main Street in Little Falls.
Patriots Day at Yellow Church Cemetery
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumOn Saturday May 20, the twelfth annual Patriots Day ceremony was held at historic Yellow Church Cemetery in Manheim. The well-attended event was co-sponsored by the Manheim Lutheran Church Association and the Little Falls Historical Society.
Hector Allen Memorial Celebration
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumA memorial celebration for Hector Allen will be on June 3, 2023, from noon to 6:00 PM at the H.C. Smith Benefit Club outside St. Johnsville.