Little Falls Historical Society Museum Events
This day in history: January 21
1890
People scoff at the idea that anyone has had the genuine Russian influenza. Every man who has had a little cold flatters himself that he has the fashionable disease. Whether you call it “La Grippe”, “influenza”, plain “grip”, or a matter of fact cold, one has profound respect after wrestling with the critter awhile.
1969
Wilbur Crisp, Syracuse University basketball star, but more importantly the legendary basketball coach at LFHS for decades has died. A state championship in 1929-30 and all-class section 3 championship in 1959-57 were the high points of his 334-167 record. Crisp was also a prolific inventor of basketball and wrestling devises and equipment. He also coached at SMA.
1974
Mabel Richards, who had been identified with the library system since 1907, passed away today. She had served as school librarian from 1907 to 1929 and as librarian at the Little Falls Public Library for many years beginning in 1929.
1977
In a letter to Rear Admiral J. S. Gracey, Commander of North Coast Guard District, and Victor E. Taylor of the Federal Highway Administration; Stanley Doromas Of The U. S. Department of Interior strongly recommended against approval of the application for a bridge over Moss Island. Various groups had indicated that Moss Island merits protection and preservation.
2020
The first case of coronavirus (COVID19) was first reported at a nursing home in the U.S., in Washington state.
This day in history: January 22
1976
Little Falls has been designated a Bicentennial City.
2010
The 1982 Little Falls High School state champion baseball team was inducted in the Mohawk Valley Baseball Hall of Fame before a crowd of 200 gathered at the Knights Inn in Little Falls.
2015
The Wyndham Hotel Group has upgraded the “Knights Inn” in Little Falls to “Travelodge and Suites.” The move will provide a wider marketing plan. The motel has 48 rooms and four suites.
This day in history: January 23
1937
St. Joseph’s parish, made up of Italian immigrants, had been formed in 1923 and a wood-frame church was soon built at the corner of East John and South Mary streets. On this evening, the church was destroyed by fire.
This day in history: January 24
1833
There are from ten to fifteen Stage Coaches running through the village every day, and from twenty to sixty Boats passing daily on the Canal in the season of navigation.
1896
West Main Street has been set apart by the mayor to be used by horsemen as a speedway on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, between two and five pm.
From the Cooney Archives
The Little Falls Lock 17 Dedication Celebration of 1916 by Angela Harris
/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum“Will Go Down in History: Historical Pageant and Lift Lock Celebration Greatest Ever Held in Mohawk Valley. July 4, 1916” The Little Falls Journal and Courier may be forgiven for the hyperbole of its banner headline and sub heading on July 4, 1916. The overflowing pride of the language reflects the premise and themes of The Little Falls Historical Pageant and Lift Lock Celebration. The civic pageants of the first twenty years of the 20th century were testaments to civic pride and patriotism, and Little Falls was no slacker.
LITTLE FALLS HISTORICAL SOCIETY TO ACCEPT MUSEUM VISIT APPOINTMENTS
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumThe Old Bank Building Museum has not been open to the public since Christmas in Little Falls in December 2019, a year and a half ago. Somehow it seems even longer ago than that. This is about to change. The museum has a number of new exhibits since 2019, most notably, the centennial exhibit celebrating […]
Mayor Hadley Jones – A Saint or a Sinner (Part 2) by Louis Baum
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumThe writing was on the wall. Since there was no way of getting out of debt, much of it a result of illegal activities, Hadley Jones had a choice of, most likely, going to prison or to flee from Little Falls to parts unknown. His choice was to get out of town fast, with as much as he could. The exit was well planned.
Mayor Hadley Jones – A Saint or a Sinner (Part 1) by Louis Baum
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumEverybody enjoys a “rag to riches“ story especially if it involves a local boy or girl. Think about John Riccardo. John was the son of hard-working Italian immigrant parents. His father had a shoe store on John Street in addition to working long hours in a local bicycle factory. John rose to become president and chairman of the board of Chrysler Corporation.
A Sun Shower Without End by Ray Lenarcic
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumWhile driving down Flint Avenue in my hometown of Little Falls the other day, I happened to look to my right and for no apparent reason, my mind flashed back to the 1950’s. I recalled in vivid detail searching for diamonds on a rocky hillside behind the Ave with my buddy Rog Kopp.
Patriots Day Honors Those Who Were Not Sunshine Patriots by Jeffrey Gressler
/by Little Falls Historical Society Museum“These are the times that try men’s souls.” So begins Thomas Paine’s December 23, 1776 epic treatise “The Sunshine Patriot,” written at perhaps the darkest point of the American Revolution, George Washington’s half-starving, dis-spirited troops were in their Valley Forge winter quarters.
Sometimes Distributing Vaccines Easier Said Than Done by Schuyler Van Horn
/by Little Falls Historical Society MuseumWith all the buzz about COVID-19 vaccines, it brought back memories of vaccines administered when I was in Vietnam in 1971-72. I was not a Medic but an intelligence officer stationed in a remote place named An Loc. Not far from the Cambodian border, 70 miles north of Saigon, straddling Route 13 (Thunder Road), I was one of 32 Americans in MACV advisor team 47, next to 2,000 ARVN (Army of the Republic of Viet Nam).