2009 Tours - 2010 Schedule coming this Spring!

Black Rock
In 1817, the Village of Black Rock lost the competition to become the western terminus of the Erie Canal to the then-smaller Village of Buffalo. The neighborhood of Black Rock holds an astoundingly rich art and architectural history, from the magnificent former Saint Francis Xavier Church, to the new home of the growing Buffalo Religious Arts Center, to the historic storefronts on Niagara Street. Explore this neighborhood in part outdoor walking tour, part tour of the new Religious Arts Center, that celebrates the religious art of Buffalo's immigrants and faithful.

Meet at Amherst St & Niagara St (Map)
Co-sponsored by the Buffalo Religious Arts Center

Parkside Neighborhood
Take a walk in this Frederick Law Olmsted-designed neighborhood and you will be impressed. Highlighted by Frank Lloyd Wright’s Martin House, an art deco Pierce Arrow showroom, and Tiffany windows inside the Church of the Good Shepherd, Parkside is world-renowned for its picturesque, century-old homes.

Meet at Church of the Good Shepherd, 96 Jewett Parkway (Map)
Co-sponsored by the Parkside Community Association

Southern Exposure

Too often South Buffalo is shrouded by its industrial past and uncertain future. The reality is that few other neighborhoods can lay claim to such assets and rich history. From Red Jacket and the Indian burial ground to Olmstead's landscaping, a mason lodge and unique architecture--it's a diverse neighborhood that has remained true to its Gaelic roots. The tour will also offer interior views of neighborhood churches and an optional lunch and trivia quiz at an authentic Irish pub, "The Blackthorn."

Meet at Buffum St & Fields Ave (take Seneca St to Buffum) (Map)

Who Was Who on the Avenue?
Enjoy an interior tour of Gilda’s Club and learn about the infamous William Fingy Conners, who once lived there. Step back in time with us as we talk about wealthy Delaware Avenue families and local events that impacted U. S. history. At Gates Circle, we’ll encounter the future in the fate of Millard Fillmore Hospital and the proposed condominium project slated for the site of the former Park Lane Restaurant.

Meet at Gilda’s Club, Delaware Ave & W. Ferry St (Map)

Waterfront Revival: From Lighthouse to Commercial Slip
Can the thriving waterfront of the early 20th century come to life once more? Walk from the mouth of the Buffalo River toward the newly-reconstructed and re-watered Commercial Slip. Learn about the once barren and flooded “flats” that became a thriving neighborhood of homes and shops during the heyday of the Erie Canal. What’s next?

Meet at the shelter area of the Hatch restaurant, 329 Erie St (Map)

Richardson-Olmsted Complex
On this tour, we’ll walk the perimeter of one of H. H. Richardson’s greatest designs, the Buffalo State Hospital (interior tours have been unavailable since 2003). Surrounded by an Olmsted landscape, this largest of Richardson’s creations influenced a much-emulated architectural style named for the architect, Richardsonian Romanesque.

Meet at the gate at Forest Ave & Richmond Ave (Map)

Gold Medal Grain Elevators
Join us for an update on the Cobblestone District and Commercial Slip developments. Walk over the Michigan Avenue lift bridge for a close-up view of General Mills and other majestic grain elevators. While on tour, munch on General Mills product samples.

Meet at the Erie Canal Harbor, next to the Naval Park gift shop (Map)

Millionaire's Row
In Buffalo’s glory days, Delaware Avenue’s mansions stretched from Niagara Square to Gates Circle and constituted a tightly knit neighborhood where everyone knew each other and many were related. A number of the surviving mansions have been adapted for corporate, educational, and nonprofit uses. Millionaire’s Row today is a National Historic District. As we stroll the Avenue, we’ll discuss these architectural treasures and the business barons who built them.

Meet at Delaware Ave & North St (Map)

Heart of Polonia
Dominated by its massive Catholic churches, interspersed with business and residential designs of the highest order, the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood was the heart of Western New York’s Polish-American community for generations. It was one of the largest Polish neighborhoods in the country. Learn more about this neighborhood’s past and how that heritage continues to shape the present.

Meet in front of St. Stanislaus Church, 123 Townsend St (Map)