Forgotten Buffalo: Historic & Hip...

Forgotten Buffalo: Historic & Hip...An Urban Explorer's Guide to the Buffalo-Niagara Region: Unique Landmarks, Historic Gin Mills, Old World Neighborhoods, History, Nickel City Oddities, Tours and More!

Welcome

Experience the Tour

Departure Board

Arrival Board

Tour Polish Buffalo

Buffalo Ethnic Tours

Tour German Buffalo

Tour Italian Buffalo

Tour Irish Buffalo

Last Fine Time Tour

Buffalo Brewery Tour

Classic Taverns-Awards

Classic Taverns-Buffalo

Dill's Tavern

Top Hill Grill

Talty's

Daren's Tavern

Scharf's Schiller Park

Pristach's

G&T Inn

Gene McCarthy's

Ulrich's Tavern

Artys Grill

Dick's Eastside Inn

East End Tavern

Sportsman Tavern

The Malamute

Taverns of Polonia 1910

Dalys

Eddie Brady's Bar

Ten-O-Won Grill

Classic Taverns-Travels

The Concertina Bar

Mels Bar

Club 505

Steve's Lounge

Classic Taverns-Last Call

Felong's Tavern

Billy O's Golden Swan

Big Joe Dudzick's Tavern

The Broadway Grill

Bramer's Grill

Concord Restaurant

Messner's Aero Bar

Ray Flynn's

Kutas Warsaw Inn

McBride's Pub

Strusienski's Restaurant

Private & Ethnic Clubs

Adam Mickiewicz Library

American Serbian Club

Corpus Christi AC

Croatian "Cro" Club

Dnipro Ukrainian Center

Dom Polski - N Tonawanda

Eldredge Bicycle Club

Polish Cadets

St. Stan's Athletic Club

Third Warders Club

Ukrainian-American Center

FBTV Video

Historic Polonia District

Central Terminal

Polish Home Museum Project

Broadway Market

St. Stanislaus Church

Corpus Christi Church

St. Adalbert's Basilica

Superman Corner

Polonia Views

Eckhardt Department Store

Polish Union of America

PPS Broadway Mkt Report

Polskie Kolo Spiewackie

Lucki Urban

Buffalo's Polonia History

A Polka Moment In Time

Vintage Polka Posters

Pulaski Parade 1962

Pulaski Parade 2006

Pulaski Parade 2008

Broadway Fillmore

Polonia Stories

1910 Maps of Polonia Buffalo

Buffalo Polonia - 1910

Preserve a Polish Home

Kaminski Meats

Polonia Scrapbook

Polonia On Parade

1965 Polka Convention

Polish Paintings

Power To Polonia

Beer Murals Nielsen

Forgotten Bflo Features

Kids & Wigilia Traditions

The Simon Pure Brewery

Lost Bflo Train Stations

New York Central at War

Pennsylvania RR at War

Talkin' Proud!

Buffalo Union Station

Bayliss-Oshei Residence

Niagara Falls Steak Sub

Buffalo Heights

The Statler Hilton

Metro Rail 1973

Bflo Before & After

Retro Chip Collection

Melody Fair - N Tonawanda

Buffalo Courier Express

History in Your Pocket

Corner Store Experience

The Fair

Most Endangered Sites

Re-Light the Rand

Pierogi @ St. Nick's

Whammy Weenie

Skateland - East Ferry

Jimmy Griffin 1929-2008

Jack Kemp 1936-2009

Sattler Theater

Masonic Lodge #846

Broadway Grill Reunion

Vintage Xmas Cards

Bocce Club- Clinton St.

Smiling Ted's

Buffalo Snow

Edsbyn, Sweden

Buffalo Drive-In

Buffalo 1969

Ray Bennett Lumber Co.

Ray H. Bennett Home

Ultra Cool: 70s Buffalo

Buffalo Bowling Shirts

Great Northern Elevator

Pullman / Wagner Complex

Pierogi Capital of US

North Park Theater

Zywiec Brewery

Buffalo Beer Trays

1964 Campaign For Pres

Heritage Discover Ctr

Tale of Two Roundhouses

Brand Names Catalog

Trolley Lobby BCT

Mentholatum, Hyde, Smythe

Chez Ami 311 Delaware Ave

Schreiber Brewery

Forgotten Buffalo Sounds

Sounds of Buffalo Beer

Sounds of Buffalo

Sounds of the Hound

Utica Club Beer Song

Forgotten Buffalo-Lost

Gramza's Cigar Store

Burczynski Bakery

St. Gerard's Parish

The Polish Village

Rudas Record Store

Tondrowski's Shoe Store

The DL&W Terminal

Buffalo Gas Works

S.S. Aquarama/Marine Star

Aquarama - Final Chapter

Sattlers 998

Rivoli Theater - Broadway

H-O Elevator

Riverside Men's Shop

Mastman's Kosher Deli

Crystal Beach

Department Stores

CLASSIC PHOTOS

Bevador/Beerador Coolers

Parkside Candies

Buffalo's Last Roundhouse

Wildroot Factory

Buffalo Stockyards

Chicago Iron Works

Spolka Clothing

Forgotten Ontario

Tim Hortons #1

TH&B Train Station

Ivor Wynne Stadium

Canadian National Station

Minojijikum Island 1076

Forgotten Rochester

Retro Wegmans

Polonia Rochester

Spittoon Water Troughs

Forgotten Buffalo & Genny

Genesee Brewery Tour

Forgotten Bflo Roadtrips

Perreca's Bakery

F.X. Matts - Utica Club

Forgotten Buffalo-Media

Ch. 2: WGR & WGRZ-TV

Rocketship7

Commander Tom Show

Dialing for Dollars

Ed Tucholka

Polonia Media

Greg Chwojdak, WXRL

Tour of Bflo Broadcasting

WKBW Radio

WKBW Top 40 Celebration

KB Goes Kaboom! WKBW

1430 Main St - WKBW RADIO

A Thing of the Past 2006

WKBW's Tommy Shannon

George Hound Dog Lorenz

1420 Main St - WKBW TV

Forgotten Bflo Orchestra

R & L Lounge, 23 Mills St

Union Stock Yards Bank

The Think Bank

The Natural Tour

Preservation Corridors

Broadway

Fillmore Avenue

Lombard Gibson Mktplace

Project Paderewski

Forgotten Buffalo News

Despensata Corporation

Marketplace Kitchen

Buffalo Broadcasting

"Stay Inside, Grab A Six-Pack…”

Buffalo plow digs out Abbott Road in South Buffalo during a 2001 storm.
Buffalo plow digs out Abbott Road in South Buffalo during a 2001 storm.
Even if it is the middle of summer, Buffalonians know that winter is right around the corner. Here is a secret....most of us LOVE IT!  Snow, slush, winds and gray skies. As to winter, I say, “Bring it On!” Even as an adult, there is nothing like a snow day in Buffalo. I dream of winter mornings waking up to WKBW's Danny Neaverth reading school closings.  I admit, I still wait to hear “All Buffalo Public and Parochial Schools” announced.  After a few hours shoveling snow, you come back to a warm house where you take off your wet closes and throw on an old sweatshirt. If you are still lucky to have a “floor furnace,” you can stand over the vent and immerse yourself with a jolt of heat that would give the old blast furnace at Bethlehem Steel a run for its money. Once inside, you quickly turn on Ch. 4 to watch the “Showcase Showdown” on the Price is Right and Don Paul's weather forcast on Ch.4. The perfect “Snow Day Lunch?” Tomato soup, a grilled cheese sandwich and a side of Kraft’s Dinner. At the start of winter, I always purchase a case of Genesee Cream Ale in the “pounder” bottles and reusable case. You know the bottles… the ones that are chewed up on the outside, veterans of bingo halls and VFW posts. This is “emergency beer” that I ONLY use on such days or for older relatives during the holidays. I can only hope for a snow day sometime soon...


Buffalonians talked about snowstorms like other parts of the county can name each hurricane or earthquake. Sometimes these storms make their way into the region’s folklore. Here is a brief look at some of the big ones of the past:


1936 - Digging Out In Buffalo
1936 - Digging Out In Buffalo

Blizzard of 1936

Although it happened almost 70 years ago, older Western New Yorkers still talk about the famous St. Patrick’s Day storm of 1936. This late season storm dropped over 20 inches during one afternoon seizing the city. To this day people comment that once we pass St. Patrick's, Buffalo is clear of heavy winter weather or so we optimistically hope.




1977-Digging out in Buffalo
1977-Digging out in Buffalo

Blizzard of 1977

Much has been written about the events of the Blizzard of 77 (January 28-31, 1977). The storm forever linked Buffalo with the artic although it is a proven fact that our city is NOT the snow capital of America or even New York State. That title goes to Syracuse or Watertown!  What made this storm famous was not for the snowfall but the winds. Only 9.6 inches of new snow fell but the real killer were the sustained winds of 69 mph. The power of the wind kicked up 33 inches of snow that had gathered on a frozen Lake Erie.
 




Blizzard of 1985

On January 18, 1985, Buffalo was hit by the “Six Pack Blizzard.” The storm dropped 33.2 inches of snow with winds gusting to 53 mph. It was during this storm that Mayor Jimmy Griffin told Buffalonians to “Stay inside, grab a six-pack and watch a good football game.” This by far is one of the best lines EVER voiced by a political leader. The storm dropped 33.2 inches with winds gusting to 53 mph.



Storm of 2000

Well, not technically a blizzard....November 20, 2000 went down in Buffalo weather record books as the single greatest 24-hour snowfall in the city’s history. Snow fell at the rate of 4 inches an hour. 35+ inches hit the city during afternoon rush hour forcing thousands of Western New Yorkers to find shelter.  I was working at WNED-TV at the time and found myself stranded in Niagara Square when traffic came to a dead stop. After 4 hours standing still, I abandoned my car and spent the night at City Hall. A highlight of the night was a 2 AM trip up to the observation deck of City Hall to see a city sleeping under a thick blanket of lake effect snow.  As far as you could see, every street was filled with cars, buses and trucks. The Niagara section of the I-190 was packed solid.  As with most Buffalo storms, the main arteries were cleared by the next afternoon and we got back to planning Thanksgiving Dinner.




2001 - Digging Out in Buffalo
2001 - Digging Out in Buffalo
Blizzard of 2001

The next “biggie” started with a welcomed “White Christmas” on December 24, 2001. During the week before Christmas Buffalo basked in “balmy” 60-degree temperatures. In fact, Public Radio’s Garrison Keillor joked with a sold-out Shea’s on Dec. 22 about Buffalo’s lack of snow. When the snow eventually started to fly, the epic storm dumped over seven feet of white stuff on the Queen City. The heaviest hit parts: South Buffalo and West Seneca. 70 to 85 inches! This storm afforded me a great opportunity to “Pub Hop” on Abbott Road as hundreds of people partied into the night as a cure for “cabin fever.”



The October Surprise - October 12-13, 2006

The October 2006 Buffalo storm was an unusual early-season lake effect snow storm that hit the Buffalo, New York area and other surrounding areas of the United States and Canada, from the afternoon of Thursday October 12 through the morning of Friday October 13, 2006. It was called Lake Storm "Aphid" by the National Weather Serivce office in accordance with their naming scheme of lake snow effect storms for that year, which related to insects. Some 400,00 people lost power during the storm as leaf filled trees collaps under the weight of the snow taking down powerlines. Erie, Genesee, Orleans and Niagara Counties in Western New York declared a "major disaster" area by President George Bush. It is estimated that the storm damaged as many as 90 percent of the city's trees.



No matter what the year, digging ones car out of the snow is a yearly ritual.
St. Patrick's Day storm of 1936. Buffalo truly is the "City of Good Neighbors" during a storm.
St. Patrick's Day storm of 1936. Buffalo truly is the "City of Good Neighbors" during a storm.
St. Patrick's Day Storm of 1936
St. Patrick's Day Storm of 1936
The IRC did its best to clear both its tracks and streets clean. This plow is making its way across a Seneca Street Bridge near the Larking Warehouse.
The IRC did its best to clear both its tracks and streets clean. This plow is making its way across a Seneca Street Bridge near the Larking Warehouse.
Blizzard of 1977
Blizzard of 1977
Blizzard of 1977
Blizzard of 1977
2001
McKinley Drive in South Buffalo.
Sometimes trucking out the snow is the only option. These trucks would dump the snow at the Old Republic Steel site of South Park. The piles were so large that they last until the end of April.
Sometimes trucking out the snow is the only option. These trucks would dump the snow at the Old Republic Steel site of South Park. The piles were so large that they last until the end of April.
Abbott Road in South Buffalo after 2001 storm.
Abbott Road in South Buffalo after 2001 storm.
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