North Tonawanda History Museum © City Streets

NORTH TONAWANDA STREETS
by Wilma Laux

Every street in N. Tonawanda has had a story to tell, but some already may be lost. Who was Falconer? What became of Organ Ave.? Here are some that are known.

Old maps are a fine source of information - up to a point. Mapmakers, unfamiliar with local names, often misspell them; they include “paper streets,” which real estate developers of the time hope will materialize. Local citizens make changes, official and otherwise, in referring to them.

In 1963, Toellner Ave. became Wurlitzer Drive to honor Farny Wurlitzer. In the earliest days of the original village, Main St. extended across Tonawanda Creek. After Daniel Webster's visits in the 1830s to the lumber company in which he was a shareholder, the name of the north side portion was moved one block to the east and Webster's name was given pride of place.

Somewhere between these changes, two Linwood avenues were discovered, one; off Payne Ave. and one which crossed East Goundry. The latter was easily converted to Woodlin.

The earliest streets on the north side of the creek carry the names of the earliest purchasers of the property and reflect the origins of the community. George Goundry and the Sweeney Brothers, James and Col. John, were speculators who hoped that land along the creek, chosen to carry the Erie Canal, would attract buyers. In 1842, they bought two large parcels from the State of New York; two years later an adjoining third one was acquired by William Vandervoort.

These huge lots made up the First Ward of the original Village of Tonawanda, about three-fourths of the area which would become N. Tonawanda. This first ward extended east to Division St., known also as Mile Road. The Mile Line had been drawn from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, one mile from the Niagara, to mark the indemnity in land forced from the Seneca for the Devil's Hole Massacre. The northern boundary of the ward was Wheatfield St., called Wheatland on some old maps. This name came from the township in which it is located.

For eight years, the whole ward was known as the Village of Wheatfield, from the time the ward withdrew from the Village of Tonawanda over a street maintenance argument, until the state legislature authorized the legal establishment of the Village of Tonawanda in 1865.

However, until well after the Civil War, the new village remained a cluster of buildings in the angle made by the creek and the river, and the northerly limit was more realistically along Sylvan Street, where the crucial gravel pit was located. This became Tompson Street, named like Oliver Street, for Oliver Thompson. Geneva Street was named for his wife.

His son, James Sweeney Thompson, was involved with selling the outlying Sweeney property, it is difficult today to visualize the local landscape one hundred years ago - still wooded, much of it swampy, all of it edged with underbrush.

Pine Woods Park, the scattered wood lots in the eastern part of the city, and the extensive woods north of Meadow Drive, between Payne Ave. and Nash Road, are remnants and reminders. Pine Woods Park, first known as Sweeney Park, was at one time the center of J. S. Thompson's real estate development. Louisa Parkway was named in memory of his sister. (A much older Louisa Street exists off Erie Ave.)

After Goundry Street was extended eastward across Payne Ave. in 1868, Thompson built a fine house on the corner of Niagara Street. The gardens extended to Christiana Street and were surrounded by a handsome wrought iron fence.

Christiana Street was named for the wife of H. P. Smith. The Smiths bought from her mother, Mrs. Benjamin Long, widow of Tonawanda's first permanent settler, a tract extending from Payne Avenue almost to Vandervoort, and from both sides of Christian Street to Thompson. Grant and Lincoln Avenues were opened to honor two men Mrs. Smith esteemed. She lived at 52 Christian from her 70th to her 90th year, and many of the other lots on the street were owned by her son and daughters.

Col, Lewis S. Payne, who later became the local Civil War hero, moved from Tonawanda to an old farm on the northeast corner of Wheatfield Street and Payne Ave. This became his family home for many years. Payne also owned large parcels of land, much of it north and east of Wheatfield Street. The road from his farm, opened in 1854, stopped near Goundry, probably because of dense woods.

Records show that 12 years later the village trustees were petitioned to connect “Sweeney's Lane” with “Payne's Road,” said connecting link to be called Forest Street. However, Payne's name was the one preferred by the citizens and it has remained, even though for a period of 10 months in 1874-75, it was officially named Mohawk Avenue. Could this have been the work of political opponents of the colonel who was an ardent Democrat in a community largely Republican?

Many other streets, beyond the center of the village, were also named for their residents. An 1873 map shows two Miller families living on that street. Jacob Schenck was an early developer of the same period. His name, so frequently misspelled on the street signs, was nearly lost in 1888 when the second James Sweeney opened an extension of Schenck Street, through the Sweeney woods, and wanted the whole length named Saginaw Street.

This Sweeney's wife was Kate Ganson, another woman to be honored with a street name. A. Duckwitz, justice of the peace and realtor, was less fortunate than Schenck. The street bearing his name became North Marion.

The Rumbold family homestead still stands at the northeast corner of Rumbold and Zimmerman. Frederick Sommer and Gottfried Keil were early owners of land along Oliver Street and were permitted in 1887 to open streets and to sell lots thereon.

“Nash's path” ran from the farm of W. H. Nash, about at present Errick Road, to N. Tonawanda, through undeveloped area, in part on Corduroy Road.

Street names are all that remain of once locally important industries. A map is needed to locate some of them now.

The section of the community, which grew up after 1873 when the Niagara River Iron Co. was opened, was called Ironton. The street which had the railway stop for the plant became Ironton also.

When the Tonawanda Engine and Machine Co. moved from its fire-damaged buildings on Sweeney Street to the corner of Oliver and Goundry, the street behind was named Mechanic for the master mechanics who worked there before the company turned to the making of merry-go-rounds.

From the early 1870s, lumber-handling firms lined the river. Smith and Fassett at that time owned Tonawanda Island. The Fassett name today marks a two-block right of way between Robinson and Schenck.

A. G. Kent, A. B. Carruthers and Simson and Felton were competitors on the mainland. Streets named for Simson and Carruthers run south from Wheatfield, all though the former is spelled Simpson on present day maps. A Kent block runs south from Thompson, only on a city map, but Kent's house still stands at 208 Goundry. Felton Street was named for Benjamin Franklin Felton, who moved here shortly after the Civil War and became a leading citizen and president of the school board for many years.

Sweeny Street, in the Martinsville section, has had a varied history. The main road through that community was originally William Street. It connected Sweeney on the south with Sawyer's Creek Road on the north.

When the first Niagara Falls Boulevard was built, it ran along on the Erie county side of Tonawanda Creek, crossed the creek over Bushes' bridge into N. Tonawanda, and then on north.

The names William Street and Sawyer's Creek Road lost out to the brick paved pride of the period, the boulevard.

In time, the present Niagara Falls Boulevard was built farther east of the creek and joined the “Old Boulevard” near Shawnee Road. The East Robinson Street Bridge now carries traffic across the creek and only the Leisure Inn marks where the old bridge stood and where Sweeney Street ends.

Time spent with a modern, city map could add more names to this list, but a comparison with an older one would be more intriguing, especially one which shows where Niagara Falls Boulevard and Colvin Avenue were originally planned to be. Check it out!

* TAKEN FROM THE 1997 CENTENNIAL BOOK

** Taken from articles in the Tonawanda News with a byline by: Willard Dittmar, then President of the HSOT Allen Street

* Named after Edward Allen.

Christiana Street

* Named after Christiana Long Smith, who was the daughter of Benjamin and Mary Long, builders of the Long Homestead in Tonawanda, and wife of Henry P. Smith. Henry P. Smith was a lumberman. His descendent, Henry P. Smith III was a U. S. Congressman, representing North Tonawanda for a number of years.

** Christiana Street in North Tonawanda was named for Christiana Long Smith, daughter of Mary and Benjamin Long.

Christiana was one of seven children raised in the log home built by her parents in 1829 at the confluence of Tonawanda and Ellicott Creeks. This log home is still standing today in what became the City of Tonawanda and is known as “Jay's Log Cabin.”

In 1841, Christiana married Henry P. Smith. After living a few years in Lockport and in Canada, Mr. and Mrs. Smith returned to North Tonawanda. In 1865 and 1867, Christiana purchased from her mother large parcels of land from Lot 81 in North Tonawanda. These purchases extended westward from Forest Street (now called Payne Avenue) between Goundry Street and Vandervoort Street, and extended back to the gravel pit which is now a playground back of the City Hall.

Christiana Street was then laid out through the property with lots on both the north and south sides of the street. Christiana Long Smith was the mother of North Tonawanda businessman Henry P. Smith II and the grandmother of Congressman Henry P. Smith III of North Tonawanda.

In 1880, residents of Christiana Street wanted the name of the street changed to “Maple” but the petition was tabled. (Tonawanda News 6-7-69)

Division Street

* Originally named Mile Road because a treaty required a boundry line, which followed the curve of the Niagara River, to be located one mile from the river.

** Division Street takes its name from the dividing line that separated the New York State “Mile Line” from the Holland Land Company purchase.
In 1786, at the Hartford convention which was called to adjust claims to Central and Western New York lands, the State of New York reserved a tract a mile wide along the eastern shore of the Niagara River from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, constituting the well known Mile Strip, or Mile Reserve. The remaining land was then sold to the Holland Land Company, or, rather, to their agents. In the fall of 1798, Seth Pease surveyed the line of the State Reservation along the Niagara River. This boundary, which became known as the Mile Line, began at the foot of Genesee Street in Buffalo and thence ran northward to Lake Ontario, always at a distance of a mile from the river.

Early maps of the village of North Tonawanda show that this boundary was also the eastern limit of the village. The road that ran along this boundary was called Mile Line Road, or simply, Mile Street. Division Street can be called the modern name of this once famous dividing line. (Tonawanda News 9-18-69 )

Evans Street

* Named after Edward Evans, who founded the first banking business.

Felton Street

* Named after Benjamin Felton, Village President in 1891.

** Felton Street in North Tonawanda was named for Benjamin Franklin Felton, a prominent businessman of great vitality and a civic leader in the early days of the Twin Cities.

Felton came to the area in 1867 and purchased a large tract of land bounded by Division Street, Tremont Street, Rumbold Avenue and extending east to the area known as Black Hannah's Woods. Together with John Simson, he acquired all the land along the Niagara River from Wheatfield Street north to the present city limits.

The river frontage was ultimately sold to the Niagara Iron Works and the inland section was cut into streets for residential lots.

Ben Felton served one term as president of the village, and was village trustee for several terms. He was also a member of the school board, serving as its president for 30 years. Felton died in 1905 at the age of 78.
East Felton Street, although not in direct line with Felton Street, is considered a continuation of such and, because of its location on the east side of Oliver Street, was named East Felton Street. (Tonawanda News 7-5-69)

Goundry Street

* Named after George Goundry, who owned a great deal of land with the Sweeney Brothers and set up some of the village streets.

** North Tonawandas Goundry Street, first shown on D. Jay Brown's map of 1837 as Detroit Street, was named for George Goundrv, an early settler, who, together with Col. John and James Sweeney laid out and developed a large part of the Village of Tonawanda.

Perhaps we should say Village of ‘Niagara' for that is what these three men called the little settlement that had sprung up on both sides at the mouth of Tonawanda Creek.

In 824 these three men printed a handbill advertising “Niagara” as “a village 12 miles from Buffalo, 8 miles from the Falls and 16 from Lockport. A line of stages passes through from Buffalo to Lockport every other day” the handbill further advised. “Building lots are now offered for sale to actual settlers. The title is indisputable and good warranty deeds will be executed to purchasers.”

Previous to 1868, Goundry Street ended at Forest Street now known as Payne Avenue. At a meeting of the village trustees held on Oct. 6, 1868, it was moved and seconded that the Niagara County judge be presented an application to appoint commissioners to assess damages for a Goundry # Street extension. Motion was carried. (Tonawanda News 6-21-69)

# Note: George Goundry never lived here. He was land agent for several individuals who purchased sections of the “Mile Strip” in 1805. George lived with his wife, Margret, on a 200 acre farm in Geneva, N.Y. (A. Daniel Bille, NT City Historian 2004 )

Ironton Street

** Ironton Street in North Tonawanda takes its name from the section of the city that in the 1870s was unofficially called the Village of Ironton. It was an area east of the “iron works” and was composed of refugees from Poland and other European countries.

Ironton was dominated by the Niagara River Iron Co., formed in 1872 with a paid-up capital of $400,000. The buildings were erected in 1873 and manufacturing operations commenced the same year. The blast furnace was constructed to run out 50 tons of pig iron per day,

The dock fronting on the river was 500 feet in length, reaching a water depth of 10 feet. Installed on the dock was an engine for raising freight from the vessels.

In 1895 the plant was acquired by the Tonawanda Iron and Steel Co, and new buildings were erected which were first lighted by President McKinley by remote control from Canton, Ohio.

Today, completely modernized and rebuilt, it is known as Tonawanda Iron Division of American Standard Inc.

The area once known as Ironton is now the Third Ward of North Tonawanda and includes all of the older numbered avenues. (Tonawanda News 2-14-70)

Island Street

** Island Street, one of the several non - residential streets in North Tonawanda, acquired its name from Tonawanda Island.

In the middle 1880s, Tonawanda Island became the center of the vast lumber industry in the Tonawandas. Access to the island was by boat only and lack of a bridge was a severe handicap to the expansion of the lumber companies on the island.

In 1886 a group of lumbermen petitioned the Village council to open a street beginning at Main Street and running to the Niagara River, with the understanding that the owners of Tonawanda Island would construct “a drawbridge" for railroad track; also having a free driveway for teams and passengers.”

At a meeting of the Village Council on April 23, 1886, the following resolution was adopted: “That this Board hereby propose to open a street from Main Street to the Niagara River, as described by a petition of freeholders, and as shown on map accompanying same, both now on file with the clerk. The land to be taken being a four rod strip southerly from the northern boundary lines, and running easterly and westerly through the several pieces of land owned by Joseph Skinner, the Lockport and Buffalo Railroad Company, the N.Y.C. and H.R.R.R. Company, and Caroline Sweeney.

Island Street remained the only thoroughfare to Tonawanda Island until Nov. 1, 1967, when the Frederick B. Durkee Memorial Bridge was dedicated and opened to the public. (Tonawanda News 12-8-69)

Keil Street

** Keil Street in North Tonawanda was named for Gottlieb Keil, a German immigrant farmer who came to this area in 1848 at the age of 24. He lived for a short time with a friend on Schultz Road, and then purchased a large farm on Nash Road.

Immediately after the Civil War, Mr. Keil, together with Herman Sommers, purchased for residential purposes 10 acres of land lying along the west side of Oliver Street. At the south end of this property a street was laid out from Marion Street to Oliver, which Mr. Keil named for himself. Several years later Keil Street was extended from Oliver Street to Payne (Payne's) Avenue.

Descendants of Gottlieb Keil still live in North Tonawanda, among them five granddaughters, Harriet, Anna, Lydia, Rose and Emma Keil; one grandson, Henry Keil, who resides on Klemer Road, Wheatfield; two great-grandsons, Richard and Henry Keil, and one great-granddaughter, Mary Keil Boehnke, who resides with her husband, Harold, on Linden Avenue, North Tonawanda.

The spelling of “Keil” apparently has been troublesome. The newer street signs spell it that way, but an older sign at Vandervoort Street spells it “Kiel.”

Louisa Parkway

** Louisa Parkway in North Tonawanda was once a part of a large wooded tract known as Sweeney's Grove, or, Sweeney's Park.
In 1924 James Sweeney, who at that time lived in Buffalo but had a real estate office in the Sweeney Building, corner of Webster and Sweeney Streets, cleared a portion of this tract and laid out a street for residential purposes. In 1926 there were two houses on the street, one of which was owned by the late Harold W. Hill.

One day while riding on the train to Buffalo, Mr. Hill happened to sit next to Mr. Sweeney. In the course of general conversation, Mr. Hill turned to Mr. Sweeney and asked “Jim, why did you name our street Louisa Parkway?” Mr. Sweeney replied, “I named it in memory of my departed sister, Louisa. She was very dear to me and I wanted her name perpetuated.”

Thus a street became a monument to one held dear in memory. (Tonawanda News 7-19-69)

Nash Road

** Nash Road in North Tonawanda takes its name from W. H. Nash, an early settler, farmer, carpenter and joiner, whose farm was situated on what today is Errick Road in the Town of Wheatfield.

Nash Road originally was a path cut through the dense woods for the passage of a two-wheeled wagon, and was called Nash's path. Later, in order to get through the nearby swampland, a corduroy road was built to Sawyer's Creek. This type of road was made by cutting trees, trimming off all branches and laying the trimmed logs side by side. The resulting road resembled the rough pattern on corduroy cloth, hence the name.

In July, 1927, 29 resident- owners of property fronting on the part of Nash Road within the city limits petitioned the Common Council “to cause to be paved the Nash Road from its intersection with Wheatfield Street in the City of North Tonawanda northerly to the city line.” (Tonawanda News 7-31-69)

Payne Avenue

* Named after Lewis S. Payne who lived at the highest point in the area, the corner of Payne and Wheatfield Street. He had a farm and built the first steam sawmill. He was a famous scout during the Civil War, became County Clerk, State Assemblyman and State Senator. This street was originally called Forest Street, because of the thick forest.

** No street name in the Tonawandas created more official controversy than that of Payne's Avenue, which is the official designation despite what the street signs say.

About 1854 or 1855. Col. Lewis S. Payne, a Civil War hero, purchased the old Anguish farm in the Town of Wheatfield at what is now the northwest corner of Payne's Avenue and Wheatfield Street in North Tonawanda.

On Feb. 5, 1859, Col. Payne and 12 freeholders petitioned the highway commissioners of the town to lay out a road from the Payne farm to Tonawanda Creek, half the distance of which was in woods and timbered land. This road, called Payne's Road, evidently stopped at the wooded section at Goundry Street, for on May 8, 1866, the Board of Trustees of the newly created village of North Tonawanda passed a resolution laying out a street from Sweeney's Lane Sweeney Street to the intersection of Payne's Road to be known as Forest Street.

At a meeting of the Board of Trustees held on Dec. 1, 1868, the following resolution was unanimously adopted: “Resolved that the streets in said village known as Forest Street and Payne's Road, one road being a continuation of the other shall hereafter be known as Payne's Avenue and shall be known as Payne's Avenue from the northerly end of said road to the Tonawanda Creek.”

However, at a meeting of the trustees held on Aug. 11, 1874, the board adopted the following resolution: “That the name of the street heretofore known as Forest Street and now known as Payne's Avenue is hereby changed to the name of Mohawk Avenue and the said street is to be known as such.”

The name “Mohawk Avenue” was, however, short-lived, for at a regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of the village held on June 7, 1875, the following appears: “Resolved that the resolution passed by the Board of Trustees of this village on the 11th day of August, 1874, purporting to alter or change the name of Payne's Avenue to Mohawk Avenue, be and the same hereby is rescinded (sic), annulled and expunged and that the said street be named, called and known hereafter as it has been for many years heretofore as Payne's Avenue.” The ayes had it and the resolution was adopted.

Robinson Street

* Named after Charles Robinson.

Roncroff Drive

** Roncroff Drive in North Tonawanda was named by an affectionate father for his little son.

In 1948, Louis Burton Croff was the head of a contracting company called Roncroff Inc., the main purpose of which was to develop a large tract of land along Sweeney Street for housing purposes. The development was to include streets, drives and lanes. As a large part of this land was wooded or swampland, little hope was given by others for the success of the venture. However, Mr. Croff went ahead with his development and laid out a street which he named Roncroff after his son Ronald Croff. His plans included a series of cross streets, one of which was to be named Sandra Lane after his daughter, but because of Mr. Croff's untimely death in December of 1940, these streets were never built.

Ronald Croff and his wife Nina live at the present time at 326 Niagara St. in North Tonawanda with their three children Ronald Scott, Kenneth Burton, and Mark James Croff.

Shawnee Road

** Shawnee Road in the Town of Wheatfield was named, not for the Shawnee Indians as popularly supposed, but for an early settler named Timothy Shaw.

In 1828, Timothy Shaw, in connection with Volney Spalding, established a store and ashery (a place where ashes were made and sold for use in soap making) in the northeast corner of what was to become the Town of Wheatfield in 1836. This was the start of a little hamlet called Shawnee, so named by Shaw himself.

In a History of Niagara County, dated 1878, Shawnee was described as a hamlet containing a dry goods and grocery store, blacksmith and wagon shop, a post office, and a small, neatly constructed Methodist Episcopal church, erected in 1813. The earliest preaching was of that denomination, by the Rev. Messrs. Hoag and Cole.

Today, Shawnee Road, starting at Niagara Falls Boulevard, is designated State Route 425, and is one of the main roads leading north from North Tonawanda. (Tonawanda News 12-15-69)

Sommer Street

* Named after Frederick Sommer, Village President from 1888 to 1889.

** Sommer Street in North Tonawanda was named by Frederick Sommer, a Niagara County farmer who laid out the street in 1874.
On July 11, 1887, at a meeting of the North Tonawanda Village Council, Trustee Berger offered the following and moved its adoption:

“Whereas, in the year 1874 Frederick Sommer and Gotlieb Keil, being then the owners of the lands described in a certain deed dated August 1, 1873, and recorded in the Niagara County clerk's office in Liber 130 of deeds, at Page 473 (said lands being at that time and yet being within the Village of North Tonawanda) did cause the same to be surveyed and laid out into streets and village lots, and did cause a map of such survey to be made designating thereon the streets by name..

“Resolved, that the dedication to the public for the purposes of streets of the lands designated as streets on a certain map which was made for Frederick Sommer and Gotlieb Keil by C. F. Witmer, surveyor., in 1874, and placed on file in the Niagara County clerk's office, be and the same is hereby accepted for the purpose of streets, and that the streets be known by the names designated on said map.”

Records show the motion was carried. (Gotlieb spelled this way in article)

Sweeney Street

* Named after James Sweeney who donated land for the first public school house and John Sweeney who was a colonel in the War of 1812 and developed the local train station.

** Sweeney Street is one of the oldest streets in North Tonawanda and was named for Col. John Sweeney, a veteran of the War of 1812 and an early developer of the Village of Tonawanda.

The little pathway, originally known as Col. Sweeney's Lane started from the Sweeney homestead located in a clearing along Tonawanda Creek and ran through the woods and timbered land north to the south line of Lot 80 at Goundrv Street. Records show that it was only fenced a part of the way and was more a cow path than anything else.

The first mention of it as a public thoroughfare was on May 8, 1866, when at a regular meeting of the trustees of the Village of North Tonawanda, a motion was made and carried that Col. Sweeney Lane be widened to four rods from Goundry Street to Vandervoort's south line of Lot 80 by adding two rods to the west side. This was the first act of the board to lay out and open Sweeney's Lane one year after the organization of the village as a corporation.

Several years ago an unsuccessful attempt was made to change the historic name of Sweeney Street to Shore Drive. (Tonawanda News 5-17-69)

Thompson Street

* Named after James S. Thompson, Village President from 1885 to 1887.

** Thompson Street in North Tonawanda takes its name from James Sweeney Thompson, a descendant of one of the oldest families in the area.

His grandfather, James Sweeney, and great uncle, Col. John Sweeney, were the first to realize the natural advantages of the present site of the Tonawandas and they early acquired large tracts of land in what are now the principal residential and industrial sections of North Tonawanda.

James S. Thompson was born in North Tonawanda on Oct. 11, 1855. He was the son of Oliver Curtis Thompson. His mother was Catherine Sweeney, whose father, James Sweeney, located in North Tonawanda in 1828; built the first frame dwelling in the village and donated lots for the first church and first school house.

At the time of his birth, Thompson's parents lived almost on the identical spot on Webster Street where the building formerly occupied by the Tonawanda News is located.

Thompson was primarily a banker, but was also interested in the lumber business. He was president of North Tonawanda for five years when the community was still operated under a village charter. He was a village trustee for many years and was a member of the first water board organized in North Tonawanda. His daughter was Mrs. Peter A. Porter Jr.   Mr. Thompson died Feb. 18, 1916.

Vandervoort Street

* Named after William Vandervoort, who purchased land from the Holland Land Company, built a hotel and the first brick mansion in North Tonawanda.

** Vandervoort Street in North Tonawanda was named for William Vandervoort, an early settler and brother-in-law of James Sweeney. He located here in 1825.

On June 7, 1826, he purchased Farm Lot 80, which, together with Lots 81 and 82. owned by James Sweeney, comprised three quarters of the old corporate limits of North Tonawanda. The community then was bounded by the river on the west. Tonawanda Creek on the south, the mile line on the east and Wheatfield on the north.

The “mile line” was a distance one mile from Niagara River. Divison Street was supposedly the “mile line” for the village of North Tonawanda, separating it from Wheatfield.

In 1821, Mr. Vandervoort erected the first public house, called the Niagara, which was destroyed by fire in 1844. He subsequently purchased from the Holland Land Co. 1,700 acres of land, and sold the tract to German immigrants. He also was a partner in a store established by the East Boston Timber Co., and was interested in the purchase of stave and oak timber for the Boston market.

William Vandervoort's residence stood at 84 Sweeney St., where he opened the first bank in the village in 1836. It was known as the Bank of Niagara. Today the Downtowner Motor Inn (newly named Packet Inn) occupies the site. (Tonawanda News 8-30-59)

Walck Road

** In the early days of the Town of Wheatfield, many of the roads were named for its pioneer residents.

Walck Road, in the City of North Tonawanda, was no exception, and was named for Gottlieb Walck, a farmer of German extraction who was born in the Town of Wheatfield on June 16, 1849. He was the son of Christian and Wilhelmina (Wendt) Walck, natives of Germany.

His father, being an expert farmer, taught him the rudiments of the business at an early age. Walck became very successful as a farmer and lived on the same farm in Wheatfield for more than 30 years.

On May 2, 1872, he married Mary Thiele, by whom he had five children: George, Annie, Esther, Ellen and Adelaide.

Politically, Gottlieb Walck was an avowed Republican and because of his popularity, he was elected excise commissioner. He was also supported by a large majority in the Republican party for other political offices. (Tonawanda News 4-25-70)

Webster Street

* Named after Daniel Webster, who was an investor in the East Boston Company of Massachusetts, which purchased acres of white oak on Grand Island. While visiting here, he stayed in the White Mansion on Tonawanda Island, home of Stephen White, who represented the company. Stephen's daughter, Caroline, married Daniel's son, Fletcher.

** Webster Street was named for the great American orator and statesman, Senator Daniel Webster.

In 1833, the East Boston Timber Co. of Massachusetts was organized to cut the large stand of white oak trees then growing on Grand Island. Headquarters for the company was located on White's Island (now Tonawanda Island where Stephen White, manager of the timber company, built his stately home.

Daniel Webster had an interest in the East Boston Timber Co. and frequently visited the White mansion. His son, Fletcher Webster, often accompanied his father on these visits and as a result, Fletcher became acquainted with and eventually married Stephen White's daughter, Caroline.

Early maps of Tonawanda show that Webster Street was once named Main Street and Main Street was called Webster. Just why the names were reversed is not clear from the records available, but time has proved that the street named for a great American did become one of the main streets of North Tonawanda. (Tonawanda News 10-25-69)

Wheatfield Street

* This lane was a direct route from Colonel Payne's wheat fields to the docks at the river.

** Wheatfield Street takes its name from the Town of Wheatfield, which was named from the general character of the soil as a wheat-producing section of the county.

The Town of Wheatfield was formed from the Town of Niagara on May 12, 1836, and was populated by three colonies of Prussians. The first group, which came into Niagara County in 1843, purchased 4,000 acres of land in the northern and central parts of Wheatfield and located there. Another group founded another village on Tonawanda Creek called Martinsville, and the third settled on Shawnee Road leading from Lockport to Niagara Falls, called Wallnow.

Most of these people had fled from religious persecution in Europe and when they came to America they moved into the homesteads of those Yankees who left the area for cheaper lands in the new states of Michigan and Wisconsin.

In the early days of the village of North Tonawanda, Wheatfield Street was the northernmost boundary of the village. A map of North Tonawanda dated 1875 shows that Wheatfield Street at that time was known as Wheatland Street. (Tonawanda News 11-21-69)

Wurlitzer Drive

** Wurlitzer Drive in North Tonawanda was named for Farny R. Wurlitzer, a man who has become almost a legend in his own time in the Tonawandas.

As chairman of the board of The Wurlitzer Co., he has been called the sponsor of automatic music in America.

Under his guiding hand the North Tonawanda Wurlitzer plant undertook the production of upright, player and grand pianos. The “Mighty Wurlitzer” pipe organs were also built under Farny Wurlitzer's direction. Through the days of silent motion pictures Wurlitzer was the world leader in pipe organs for the entertainment business.

On Monday, Dec. 2, 1963, the North Tonawanda Common Council unanimously approved a resolution submitted by the then 7th Ward alderman, Paul Rumbold, which reads as follows:

“Be it resolved that the name of the street running from Woodward Avenue to Sweeney Street, presently known as Toellner Avenue and Clair Avenue, is hereby changed to Wurlitzer Drive.'

When informed of the honor bestowed upon him, Mr. Wurlitzer modestly replied. “I'm quite pleased to have a street named after me but I don't really see the need for it.”

The community, however, saw otherwise as it bestowed honor and affection reserved for a great citizen. (Tonawanda News 9-13-69)

Cedar, Pine and Spruce Streets, named for the well known species of evergreen trees, were created as the result of a proposed addition to the village of North Tonawanda.

In 1888, a map of the Wright farm, Lot 14, Range 8, Town of Wheatfield showed a proposed real estate development east of the village. At that time this tract of land was owned by two Lockport men named E.L. Jeffrey and Frank P. Weaver.

The property was laid out into 60 building lots, 40 by 120 feet each. Thirteen lots had already been sold in 1888 when the map was first published. The streets were named by the developers for the particular species of evergreen trees — Cedar, Pine and Spruce. William Gombert was advertised as the local agent in charge of selling all building lots.

In October, 1912, releases were obtained for additional Land to extend Pine and Spruce Streets. In a resolution made by Alderman Lindhurst it was moved that the street releases presented by Duncan Sinclair and Jessie B. Sinclair for Pine and Spruce Streets be received and properly recorded.

Article: Transcribed from a collection of "Try To Remember" articles developed by the Historical Society of the Tonawandas, which appeared in the Tonawanda News from 1976 - 1978, by Melville J. Batt. This collection was provided by Melville's son, Douglas Batt.

From: Ward Bray - Amherst, NY - September 19, 2005

"I would like to know how Ward Road and Oliver Street got their names. My great-grandfather, Wallace Olver, owned property on RD #2 (now Ward Road) near Oliver Street in the early 1900's through the 1950's. There is a Wallace Avenue on his old property (named after him) and an Adelaide Street (named after his daughter). Wallace's son was Ward, who lived next door. I am curious whether Ward Road was therefore named after his son. My grandfather was Ward Olver. This then leads me to wonder whether Oliver Street was a misspelling of Olver? With some of the streets certainly named after family members, it's not much of a stretch to imagine that Ward Road and Oliver Street were named after Ward Olver who lived nearby. My mother was born at 400 Ward Road."