Archive - WNY Heritage

Buffalo's Sewers: A History of the Queen City from Below

From backyard latrines and cesspools to innovative smart technology, we explore the history of Buffalo's sewer system over the last 200 years.

Mister Buffalo River— The Environmental Advocacy of Stan Spisiak

We examine the environmental efforts of this unassuming Buffalo jeweler to reclaim the waterfront of the city he loved.

The Great Horse Healer: Dr. John T. Claris - East Buffalo Veterinary Hospital

Veterinarian, innovator, community leader and vendor of patent medicines, Dr. John Claris saved countless equine lives with his facilities and innovations in horse care.

The Jolls House: Orchard Park’s Italianate Treasure Celebrates its Sesquicentennial

Built by Ambrose Johnson in 1870, the house occupied for decades by Dr. Williard Jolls became the center of the Orchard Park community and is a fine extant example of Italianate architecture. A collaborative arrangement between the town and the Orchard Park Historical Society is helping to preserve this important piece of local history.

Life in the Craig Colony

Created as a pioneering facility for epileptic patients, we look at the rise and fall of this Livingston County community, portions of which survive today under very different circumstances.

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Buffalo and the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918

A century ago, a particularly deadly strain of influenza rocked the world, killing at least 50 million people, including almost 3,000 Buffalonians.

Rochester’s Great Tonsil Massacre

George Eastman and his industrialist colleagues launched a public health campaign in 1920, designed to rid Rochester children of a perceived “pain in the neck.”

Women-Led and World-Renowned: The Children’s Hospital of Buffalo

In the wake of the opening, a year ago, of the John R. Oishei Children's Hospital, we take a look back at how the institution began—and grew.

Western New York Heritage

The Archive