Visit the North Tonawanda History Museum at 314 Oliver Street or mail a check or phone in your Master Card or Visa Card information at 213-0554.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

Advance orders now being accepted for second Heritage Cookbook  

The North Tonawanda History Museum is now accepting advance orders for its second in a series of heritage cookbooks, “ North Tonawanda Families & Their Favorite Recipes.”

The new cookbook will sell for $11 including sales tax. Advance orders may be placed through the Museum. Include $3 for shipping and handling per cookbook. The new cookbook will be released during Canal Fest 2007 as part of its 25 th year celebrations and will be available at the Museum’s booth throughout Canal Fest.

Barbara Wickman is Heritage Cookbook Committee Chair. Jessica Brant, a North Tonawanda High School student and active Museum volunteer is the typist. Danielle Oney, a SUNYAB nursing student and active Museum volunteer is proofreader.

The Museum’s first book in the series, “ North Tonawanda Ethnic Heritage Cookbook,which was first released for sale on January 6, 2005, has been reprinted four times since. Orders have come in from all over the country, and as far away as Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates. The unique cookbook contains 115 recipes, with a variety of ethnic flavoring, each including a historical note about the family or individuals contributing or originating the recipe. A brief history of North Tonawanda is included as well. The cookbook is dedicated to Ken Mountain, a 1958 graduate of North Tonawanda High School, who is a Charter member of the new Museum and a researcher/writer for the Museum. He is credited as having suggested the cookbook project. He is now a resident of Texas. Cynthia Fredricks coordinated the creation and compilation of first the cookbook. This first cookbook is still available at the Museum offices at 314 Oliver Street, or by mail for $7 each, including tax. Include $3 for shipping and handling for each cookbook for mail orders. The Museum also accepts Master Card and Visa.

Call 213-0554 for further information.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

The North Tonawanda History Museum announces its 3rd annual North Tonawanda Historic Gardens Tour. The self-guided tour runs 44-site tour runs from June 1 through August 31. Because the purpose of the tour is to encourage visitors to North Tonawanda as well as to serve its residents and to emphasize the enjoyment of history, things historical, and gardening, it is necessary to obtain the Historic Gardens Tour guidebook, in order to participate. The guidebooks, which include maps, are available at the Museum at 314 Oliver Street for a $3 donation.

Individuals or groups taking the tour may visit each site as many times as they wish throughout the time period. Most sites can be viewed at any time. A few private residential gardens have specific viewing hours as listed in the guidebook.

The tour also includes a contest component which is a city wide garden project with a historic theme requirement for participation, and meant to stimulate residents, businesses, and other organizations to turn the entire city into a garden city for the summer months, as well as to stimulate interest in things historical. The deadline for entries has passed. Not all sites in the tour are participating in the contest component. Winners of the contest component will be announced in August.

The 44-site tour component is meant to showcase North Tonawanda and its homes and gardens to residents and non-residents as a wonderful community in which to live, and encourage interest in combining a love of gardening with an interest in history. In addition to gardens, the tour also features historic sites which complement the garden sites.

The Historic Gardens Tour is an annual complement to the Museum’s bi-annual Historic Treasures Tour of historic homes. The 2nd bi-annual Historic Treasures Tour is set for Sunday, August 5. Tickets must be purchased in advance for the homes tour. Call or visit the Museum for information.

The North Tonawanda Historic Gardens Tour 2007 is hosted by the North Tonawanda History Museum, in collaboration with the Tonawanda News’ Towpath Tiller, and sponsored by Major Sponsors: Ascension Industries and Michael Mroczka/RealtyUSA; General sponsors are Brady Electric, Inc., and Andy’s Tree Service; Patrons are Graf Land Surveyors, Bonterra Landscaping, Matt’s Senator George D. Maziarz, Music, Niagara County Legislator Peter E. Smolinski, Greater Buffalo Savings Bank, Sherwood Florist, Cipriano, Inc., Realtors, Pioneer Printers; Brick, Brick, and Elmer; and the North Tonawanda Senior Center.

The North Tonawanda History Museum was awarded an Honorable Mention Award of Merit for development of the Historic Gardens Contest and Tour by the Western New York Association of Historical Agencies in November 2006.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

Dr. John H. George, President of the Board of Trustees of the North Tonawanda History Museum, has named William A. Miles and Donna Zellner Neal as working co-chairs of the Lumber City History Center Committee. Jack and Carol Kopczynski have been named Honorary Chairs of the Lumber City History Center Committtee, formed as the fundraising arm of the organization to make 54 Webster Street the permanent future home of the museum and its visitors’ center. They are supported by the following Honorary Co-Chairs: Kurt P. Alverson, A. Daniel Bille, Frank S. Budwey, William M. Davignon, Dal Giuliani, Carl P. Hoover, Paul F. Hoover, Hon. John J. LaFalce, Kay Learned, Senator George D. Maziarz, Michael B. Mroczka, Gerald N. O’Neill, George F. Rand IV, Lou Santiago, Peter E. Smolinski, Brett M. Sommer, Peter F. Trinkwalder, Margaret A. Waite, and Walter C. Yaro.

Miles, Manager of Information Technology for Transitional Services, Inc., is a 32-year member of Sweeney Hose Company and has served as its Chaplain for 18 years. He is a life member of the Western New York Fireman’s Association, the Fireman’s Association of the State of New York; the New York State Association of Fire Chaplains; and is serving the last year of a two-year term as the Chief Chaplain of the State of New York. He is Past President of the North Tonawanda Volunteer Fireman’s Association and a delegate to the Niagara County Fireman’s Association. A member of the North Tonawanda Benevolent Fireman’s Association, he has taken on the responsibility for providing the Tonawandas with the Anniversary of 9/11/2000 memorial services. He is a member of the Niagara County Line-of-Duty-Death Committee.

Born and raised in North Tonawanda, he is now a resident of the City o f Tonawanda. He is a member of the Boards of Directors of the Rotary Club of the Tonawandas and of the United Way of the Tonawandas. He was a past Canal Fest Parade chairman; and is a member of BuglesAcrossAmerica.com, and has played “taps” for Veteran’s funerals and various veterans services in the Tonawandas for more than 35 years. A 51-year member of the Sons of the American Legion, Sikora Post #1322, he also serves as Chaplain. He has assisted the Veterans Council of the Tonawandas for many years with the Memorial Day Parade.

Donna Zellner Neal is a founding Trustee of the North Tonawanda History Museum and has served as its volunteer Director since its inception in 2003. Born and raised in the City of Tonawanda, she is a resident of North Tonawanda.

Jack Kopczynski is President of Ascension Industries. Carol Kopczynski is an active volunteer with area organizations. They have been active in the North Tonawanda History Museum since its inception.

Jack’s father, John Kopczynski, one of the first seed money donors to the new Museum effort in 2003, was co-founder of Pivot Punch & Die in 1945, which grew around many of his patents, the most famous of all having been the Pivot Punch which revolutionized the metalworking punch and die industry world wide. This company grew to over 300 people at two facilities. In 1955 the partners went in separate directions each taking a part of the business. John Kopczynski then went on to become mayor of North Tonawanda in 1958-1959. During this time he also founded the St. Mary Manufacturing Corporation, a metalworking firm, where he continued his inventive ways. During his lifetime he succeeded in obtaining approximately 80 patents, one of which being the St. Mary “Spin Roll”, a holding fixture that is widely used in the metalworking industry. His research and patent work took him from all terrain vehicles on land with his “walk wheel” patent, (oval wheels instead of round for increased traction) to outer space with his theories on gravity and planet rotations within our solar system. His favorite quotation which was not his own was “man does not invent, he only discovers that which is already in nature”. An example of this would be his patented “Trotter” vehicle concept, which duplicated on wheels, the motion of a horse’s legs in its method of movement.

In 1975, Kopczynski also founded Ascension Sheet & Metal Fabrication, Inc. for light metal fabrication. The company was started by purchasing the assets of the former Joyce Plumbing and Heating Co. of Tonawanda. After a few years in Tonawanda, Ascension moved into the former Richardson Boat Company building on Sweeney Street in North Tonawanda and is still occupying the building in 2007.

In 2000, both St. Mary Manufacturing Corporation and Ascension Sheet & Metal Fabrication, Inc. were merged into one entity and renamed Ascension Industries, Inc. with headquarters on Erie Avenue in North Tonawanda, NY. The merger was successful in that Ascension Industries grew to become a first class metalworking manufacturer with strong welding, fabrication, machining and turnkey assembly capabilities for original equipment manufacturer’s throughout the United States.

John Kopczynski died in February 2005, leaving behind a successful business and a legacy of civic and personal contributions to North Tonawanda and its people, including his supportive role in the founding of the North Tonawanda History Museum.

The Board of Trustees of the North Tonawanda History Museum has been notified by NYS Senator George D. Maziarz that he has been successful in securing a cost-reimbursement grant in the amount of $10,000 under the 2007 Senate Member Initiative Program for financial assistance for the acquisition of 54 Webster St. to be the Lumber City History Center which will house the North Tonawanda History Museum and a Twin Cities Welcome Center.   The grant will be through the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation.  In March, the Niagara County Legislature presented a $5,000 grant toward the Lumber City History Center project.

The Finance Committee, chaired by the Museum Treasurer, Shari L. Kiesow, is working with the Facilities Committee, co-chairs of which are Donald R. MacDonald and Stephen Kurbiel, Museum President John H. George, and Museum Director Donna Zellner Neal, and has created the five-year budget for the total project. Details of the project will be announced at the Museum’s Third Annual Dinner & Meeting.

Reservations are being accepted for the North Tonawanda History Museum’s Third Annual Dinner & Meeting , which will be held in Pane’s Restaurant, 984 Payne Avenue, on Thursday evening, June 21.

The evening will begin with a cash bar at 6 p.m., followed by a sit down dinner at 7 p.m. Dinner choices are strip style sirloin, Italian stuffed chicken, and shrimp scampi over pasta. Reservations may be made by cash, check or credit card. Master Card and Visa are accepted. Dinner is $25 or $45 for a couple. A table of 6 is $130, a table of 8 is $175.

A copy of the 3rd Annual Report of the Museum will be issued to each attendee. The report has been developed for this year by Museum Director Donna Zellner Neal and Trustee Dennis Ziolkowski.

A presentation on the Museum’s Lumber City History Center project will be the focus of the meeting. The presentation, created by Hadley Exhibits, will provide attendees with a preview of the exciting concept the Museum Board plans for the new history center facility and Twin Cities Welcome Center. Hadley Exhibits has worked with Museum representatives since November 2003 in the development of the future museum concept. Preservation Architect Clinton Brown has worked on the project with the group since 2005. A booklet about the project is being prepared and will be distributed to guests at the Annual Dinner.

The Museum Board has initiated its fundraising efforts directed at the purchase of 54 Webster Street. A “5 & 10” campaign has begun, focusing on the building’s long history as a 5&10 cent variety store. Museum representatives plan to also incorporate a replica of the Sugar Bowl, another long-time Webster Street institution, an event hall, a reference library, a Lumber City Gift Shop, and other features into the completed project.

Call 213-0554 or email to nthistorymuseum@aol.com for more information. A reservation form may be downloaded from the North Tonawanda History Museum Online at www.nthistorymuseum.org.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

Jack and Carol Kopczynski have been named Honorary Chairs of the Lumber City History Center Committtee, formed as the capital fundraising arm of the North Tonawanda History Museum to make 54 Webster Street the permanent future home of the museum and its visitors’ center. They are supported by the following Honorary Co-Chairs: Kurt P. Alverson, A. Daniel Bille, Frank S. Budwey, William M. Davignon, Dal Giuliani, Carl P. Hoover, Paul F. Hoover, Hon. John J. LaFalce, Kay Learned, Senator George D. Maziarz, Michael B. Mroczka, Gerald N. O’Neill, George F. Rand IV, Lou Santiago, Peter E. Smolinski, Brett M. Sommer, Peter F. Trinkwalder, Margaret A. Waite, and Walter C. Yaro

The 2007 goal is $730,000, which will enable the North Tonawanda History Museum to acquire and move into the 40,000 square foot building at 54 Webster Street which housed the G. C. Murphy store for many years.

The Finance Committee, chaired by the Museum Treasurer, Shari L. Kiesow and Vice Chair, James M. Perry, Esq., is working with the Facilities Committee, co-chairs of which are Donald R. MacDonald and Stephen Kurbiel, Museum President John H. George, and Museum Director Donna Zellner Neal, in creating the five-year budget for the total project. Details will be announced at the Museum’s Third Annual Dinner & Meeting. A copy of the 3 rd Annual Report of the Museum will be issued to each attendee. The report has been developed for this year by Museum Director Donna Zellner Neal. A presentation on the Museum’s Lumber City History Center project will be the focus of the meeting. The presentation, created by Hadley Exhibits, will provide attendees with a preview of the exciting concept the Museum Board plans for the new history center facility and Twin Cities Welcome Center. A booklet about the project is being prepared and will be distributed to guests at the Annual Dinner.

Reservations are being accepted for the Third Annual Dinner & Meeting, which will be held in Pane’s Restaurant, 984 Payne Avenue, on Thursday evening, June 21.

The evening will begin with a cash bar at 6 p.m., followed by a sit down dinner at 7 p.m. Dinner choices are strip style sirloin, Italian stuffed chicken, and shrimp scampi over pasta. Reservations may be made by cash, check or credit card. Master Card and Visa are accepted. Dinner is $25 or $45 for a couple. A table of 6 is $130, a table of 8 is $175.

The Museum Board has initiated its fundraising efforts directed at the purchase of 54 Webster Street. A “5 & 10” campaign has begun, focusing on the building’s long history as a 5&10 cent variety store. Donations of $5.10 and pledges of $5.10 a month or week and other donations have begun arriving.

Museum representatives plan to also incorporate a replica of the Sugar Bowl, another long-time Webster Street institution, an event hall, a reference library, a Lumber City Gift Shop, and other features into the completed project. An important feature will be the Twin Cities Welcome Center, a visitors’ center designed to promote the Tonawandas and Niagara County as tourist destinations.

The completed Lumber City History Center will serve the needs of residents, students and researchers as a state of the art history center. It also is being designed to incorporate modern technology in a format which will create a tourist attraction of significance. The Twin Cities Welcome Center will serve as a resource center for visitors and residents on the cultural and recreational and other opportunities in the Tonawandas and in Niagara County as a whole. Samples of local products and Niagara County products will be given to visitors in the Welcome Center.

A five-year timetable for the ultimate completion has been established.

Museum Trustees and members of the Lumber City History Center Committee will also be scheduling smaller sessions, several breakfasts, several lunches, and several evening receptions in which to permit the viewing of the Hadley presentation to prospective donors or benefactors. Individuals wishing to know more are invited to call the museum.

Call 213-0554 or email to nthistorymuseum@aol.com for more information. A reservation form for the Annual Dinner Meeting may be downloaded from the North Tonawanda History Museum Online at www.nthistorymuseum.org.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

At its May 7 meeting, the Board of Trustees of the North Tonawanda History Museum named Dan Kelley, Laura E. Winchester, and Peter E. Smolinski to its Advisory Committee.

Kelly, a Buffalo resident and former North Tonawandan, isa retired radio broadcaster and a former executive director of not-for-profit organizations, including the Variety Club and the Cystic Fibrosis Association. He is now is a self-employed voice over specialist. He had previously served on the Museum’s Board of Trustees.

Winchester, an Amherst resident, is a copy editor for Bee Publications, and had been a reporter/editor with the Buffalo News, Courier-Express, and the Niagara Gazette locally, and held editing positions at newspapers in New Jersey, Connecticut, and Arkansas, in a career spanning more than 40 years. She has been a volunteer/docent on several local l history projects in Bergholz, Lockport , and the Town of Niagara . A former food editor and restaurant reviewer, she also has participated in cooking demonstrations relating to specific eras including Victorian. She has taught cooking in the continuing education programs at Niagara University and at Artpark. Winchester has a keen interest in early American decorative arts and has written a weekly column on antiques for both the Courier-Express and the Stamford Advocate in Connecticut .  She has started her own  business, Winaura Communications, whose services include public relations, preparation of news releases, brochures and newsletters, copyediting, and political campaign consulting. She had previously served on the Museum’s Board of Trustees.

Smolinski, a North Tonawanda resident, is a Niagara County Legislator, representing the 10 th District. He is a retired North Tonawanda fireman. Smolinski was also made an honorary co-chair of the Lumber City History Center Committee.

In other Museum business, President John H. George named the following Committee Co-Chairs:

Collections Committee: Michael El-Sharif and Donna Zellner Neal; Community Relations Committee: Donald R. Benjamin and Barbara Wickman; Education Committee: John H. Kolecki and Paula Belair; Finance: Shari Kiesow, Chair; James Perry, Vice Chair; Personnel Committee: Thomas Galdys and April Orlowski; Facilities Committee: Donald R. MacDonald and Stephen Kurbiel; Lumber City History Center Committee: Working Committee Co-Chairs – William A. Miles and Donna Zellner Neal; Honorary Chairs – Jack and Carol Kopczynski.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

The North Tonawanda History Museum’s 2 nd Bi-Annual Historic Treasures Tour is scheduled for Sunday, August 5, 2007, from noon to 6 p.m. Museum representatives report that tickets are selling briskly.

Two homes connected to Rand family history will be included in this year’s tour. North Tonawanda is a city with a history rich in stories of the people who lived here. From the first recorded settler in 1809 until the present, many individuals and families contributed to the developing fabric of what we affectionately refer to as “NT.” Although many remained here, over the years, the changing economy of the nation drew many others away. As a new museum of the history of this city, we have enjoyed becoming acquainted with many “former NT’ers” as they all seem to call themselves—even after decades of living elsewhere—all of whom still have a deep attachment to North Tonawanda.

The Rand family, particularly the three sons of Calvin Gordon Rand and Almira Hershey Long Rand, played a prominent role in both the community and business life of the original village and from 1897 on the city in the 19 th and 20 th centuries. The three sons, Benjamin Long Rand, George Franklin Rand, and James Henry Rand, have often been referred to as “the greatest success stories to begin in North Tonawanda.” Their influence and leadership in the banking and industrial fields continued into the second and third generations and beyond—continuing today, although no longer as residents of North Tonawanda.

The home at 257 Goundry Street which Benjamin Long Rand moved into when he was cashier of the State Bank, president of the Tonawanda City Water Works Co., and treasurer of Standard Gas Co. is included in this year’s tour. Benjamin Long Rand was mayor of North Tonawanda for two terms from 1915 to 1918. Ben’s three sons, Benjamin Garfield Rand, Charles F. (Ted) Rand, and Stanley Rand, were also prominent in business and the life of North Tonawanda. Benjamin Long Rand died in 1952 in the house next door at 261 Goundry, to which Ben had moved in the 1930s.

Ben’s son Stanley was also an active local businessman, including a real estate and insurance business. He and his wife, Winifred Vandervoort, built a home at 115 Pinewoods Drive in the 1920s. His brother, Charles F. (Ted) and his wife Emogene built a home nearby at 89 Pinewoods.

The home at 115 Pinewoods Drive in more recent years was home to Dr. G. Norris Miner and his family. They moved there in 1946, with Mrs. Miner living there until it was sold in July 2005. Dr. G. Norris Miner served as health officer for North Tonawanda from 1952 through 1965, when the Niagara County Health Department was established. In 1965, he was the first to give polio vaccinations in the Tonawandas. He organized a campaign in the North Tonawanda Schools between 1955 and 1956 wherein over 6,000 polio vaccinations were administered. He also served on the Board of Education. He practiced medicine for 40 years, retiring in June 1975. He died one year later at the age of 70.

A limited number of tour tickets will be sold. Tickets sold out quickly for the previous tour; those wishing to participate in the 2007 tour are advised to order their tickets early. It is unlikely that any will be sold on the day of the event. Orders have already come in from out of state. Payment may be made by cash, check, money order, or by Master Card or Visa. Tickets are available at the Museum at 314 Oliver Street, by mail, or may be ordered through the Online Gift Shop at www.nthistorymuseum.org.

Ticket prices are $18 each for the tour of ten of North Tonawanda’s most interesting homes. Museum members pay $15. A membership may be purchased for $10 for seniors; $15 for individuals; $25 for families. A Cinderella carriage ride by Hartland Carriages will be repeated also, at a charge of $5 per person and may be prepaid or purchased at the event if space is available on the carriage.

Tickets will be turned in for the guidebook and map at the starting point for the tour, which will be on the front veranda of the historic Paschal S. Humphrey House at 332 Goundry Street. Refreshments by Gullo’s Macaroni Grill may be purchased and enjoyed in the rear yard of the Humphrey House, surrounded by beautiful gardens which have been part of the Museum’s Historic Gardens Tours for the last three years as well. Restroom facilities and additional refreshments will be available for purchase at the historic Louis F. Eggert designed Elks Lodge #860 building at 21 Main Street. Additional restroom facilities will be available in the original First Baptist Church building at 190 Vandervoort Street, now home to Artistique Photo.

The Elks Lodge building and the Artistique Photo building are participating sites for the tour as well. The Artistique Photo building was designated a local landmark earlier this year by the North Tonawanda Historic Preservation Commission. The Elks Lodge is requesting the local designation.

Each participating site will have an antique automobile in front as a site marker. North Tonawanda resident Richard L. (Joe) Zellner is coordinating the antique automobiles. Sherwood Florist will supply floral accents for each of the participating homes.

On the grounds of the Humphrey House, throughout the event, two local authors will be present offering the books they have published. Diane Meholick, a North Tonawanda native, is the author of “Painting Katherine,” “A Switch in Time,” and “Buffalo Stories.” John H. Kolecki, son of Polish immigrants, is the author of “The Hybraid Amerykaniec Dziadzi” and “On the Avenues and Beyond.”

Joe Cecconi’s Chrysler Complex in Niagara Falls will provide free shuttle van service for tour participants between sites if desired.

Hartland Carriages will provide the horse-drawn Cinderella carriage rides as they did in the 2005 tour.

Major Sponsors for this year’s tour are: Cipriano, Inc., Realty, Pioneer Printers, Inc., the law firm of Brick, Brick & Elmer, Greater Niagara Savings Bank, Humphrey House Antiques, Pioneer Printers, Sherwood Florist, and Joe Cecconi’s Chrysler Complex. Andy’s Tree Service, Senator George D. Maziarz, and Peter E. Smolinski are general sponsors. Ascension Industries, Bonterra Landscaping, Brady Electric, Graf Land Surveyors, Holler Grapes Insurance Agency, Matt’s Music, North Tonawanda Senior Center, Michael B. Mroczka/RealtyUSA, and Thomas Turtle Optical are patrons. 

Marilyn Pane Lasky, chairwoman of this year’s event, is a life-long and 4 th generation resident of North Tonawanda and a Trustee of the North Tonawanda History Museum. Presently a customer service representative for Impressive Imprints, she served previously as Senior Buyer for the Catholic Health System and as Purchasing Director for Kenmore Mercy Hospital.

The event’s primary purpose is to present and promote North Tonawanda as a wonderful city in which to live. North Tonawanda is described by Museum representatives as “the best little city in New York State, with a small town atmosphere and a rich and unique history.”

The North Tonawanda History Museum’s first award-winning historic homes tour, “Historic Treasures Tour 2005,”on July 31, 2005, was attended by visitors from five states, Canada, and all over New York State, with a significant number of visitors expressing serious interest in relocating to North Tonawanda if the appropriate historic home were available for purchase in the future. The 2005 tour was the first of what is planned as a bi-annual event in odd-numbered years, rotating with an ethnic heritage festival in even-numbered years.

The Western New York Association of Historical Agencies awarded the North Tonawanda History Museum an Organizational Award of Merit for excellence in presenting the 2005 tour and the 65-page guidebook created as the passport to the tour which has continued to be purchased by people from all over the country. RealtyUSA was the event’s major sponsor in 2005.

In conjunction with the bi-annual tours, the Museum has established a North Tonawanda History Museum Historic Treasures Recognition Plaque program. Cast bronze plaques may be purchased through the Museum for installation on historic homes and buildings in the City, including the Humphrey House at 332 Goundry and the Evans/McLean House at 338 Goundry. Contact the Museum or the Online Museum for an order blank.

The Museum will have copies of its 2006 publication, “The Rand Family Left a Lasting Imprint on North Tonawanda—and the World!” for sale at the event registration center at 332 Goundry Street throughout the day. The publication is also available at the Museum or at the North Tonawanda Public Library for a $2 donation.

Contact the Museum at 213-0554 for further information or email to nthistorymuseum@aol.com.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

Guided and self-guided walks and other tours offered in North Tonawanda

The North Tonawanda History Museum is in its 4 th year of offering 90-minute history walks. The walks will change from the fixed one-night a week for 16 weeks event presented in 2004, 2005, and 2006, to a “by advance reservation only” event. Walks may be arranged for groups as small as three people and as large as thirty. Several options are possible on starting points. Walks may be planned around a lunch or dinner stop. Groups of ten and under are $5 for each person. For eleven to thirty walkers, the group rate is $55. Daytime and early evening times available. The walks can be scheduled from May 1 through September 15. Postponements due to rain will be rescheduled.

Call the Museum at 213-0554 to discuss tailoring something for your special event or class.

“North Tonawanda: The Lumber City,” a 32-page book, designed as a self-guided walking & driving tour guide, sponsored in part by the Seaway Trail Corporation and financed in part with funds from the New York Council for the Humanities, a State affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities is also available for those who wish to do their own tour.

Museum Director Donna Zellner Neal is the editor, Martin Wachadlo served as architectural historian, and maps were provided by the North Tonawanda Engineering Department. The booklet contains 81 stopping points, but hundreds of actual sites are included in the format. The focus of the book is on the history of North Tonawanda from the Holland Land Purchase in 1797 through the present. The thumbnail descriptions are meant to permit the reader to take a leisurely stroll or drive on a number of occasions, observing the locations at which North Tonawanda’s history took place.

The Museum also is hosting its 3 rd year of the Historic Gardens Tour. The self-guided tour begins June 1 and runs through August 31. A booklet with maps and historical notes is required for participation in the tour. The booklets will be available at the Museum for a donation of $3 beginning on June 1.

Tickets are also going quickly for the Museum’s 2 nd bi-annual Historic Treasures Tour of the interiors of some of North Tonawanda’s most interesting homes. Tickets for the August 5 event are $18 each and must be purchased in advance.

A limited number of copies of the guidebook for the 2005 Historic Treasures Tour book are also available at $5 each. The 2007 tour includes different sites offering access to the interiors than the 2005 tour did but the 2005 guide also is useful as a self-guided tour of the exteriors of local sites.

The North Tonawanda History Museum was recently honored by the Upstate History Alliance for its guided and self-guided tours. In 2005, the Western New York Association of Historical Agencies recognized them for the first Historic Treasures Tour, and in 2006 for the Historic Gardens tours.

Also available at the Museum at 314 Oliver Street are free pamphlets for the “Tonawandas’ Talking Heritage Tour”, a self-guided radio tour of the Cities of Tonawanda and North Tonawanda and their historical sites. The pamphlets were produced in 2006 by the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas’ Tourism Committee, with funding from the Chamber Alliance of NYS, the Niagara Bridge Commission, and the North Tonawanda and Tonawanda Departments of Public Works. The radio tour brochures are also available at the Chamber of Commerce. Portable radios are available for a $1 rental fee and $10 deposit from the Harbor Master on the North Tonawanda side of Gateway Harbor.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

At a luncheon and ceremonies at Kloc’s Blossom Grove on Seneca Creek Road in West Seneca, on Sunday afternoon, May 20, North Tonawanda was recognized by the presentation of two 2006 Citizen of the Year Awards by the readers of the Am-Pol Eagle, Western New York’s weekly Polish-American newspaper.

Honored were the Pierogi Makers of Our Lady of Czestochowa Church, who received the Citizen of the Year-Good Neighbor Award, and Donna Zellner Neal, Director of the North Tonawanda History Museum, who was presented the Citizen of the Year-Heritage Award.

The OLC Pierogi Makers began 20 years ago when a group of OLC women began to make pierogi available to parishioners for a donation, with the donations going for the good of the church. Since then, the Pierogi Makers have become ambassadors for Polonia as they promote their heritage with the community at numerous events such as Canal Fest, the North Tonawanda History Museum’s bi-annual Ethnic Heritage Festival, the NT Catholic Carnival, and even on television.

Accepting for the Pierogi Makers was Mary Bienko, the driving force in the project. The program began when the Rev. Louis Dolinic was pastor. He is now pastor at St. Joseph’s Church in North Tonawanda. The Rev. Dennis Fronckowiak, the present pastor, appeared proud as could be of his busload of Pierogi Makers at the event.

Donna Zellner Neal was recognized for her efforts at promoting and preserving the ethnic heritage of North Tonawanda as founder and director of the 3-year old North Tonawanda History Museum in establishing regular educational programming reaching high school and college students, nursing home residents, and the general public across the entire region; ethnic Christmas programs; the bi-annual Ethnic Heritage Festival; the publication of a number of books and a weekly column on local history in the Tonawanda News; and the development of numerous tours.

NORTH TONAWANDA HISTORY MUSEUM

Telling the Story of Our City’s Rich Ethnic & Industrial Heritage

As a City Located on the Historic Erie Canal & Mighty Niagara River

314 Oliver Street

North Tonawanda, New York 14120

(716) 213-0554

e-mail: nthistorymuseum@aol.com - website: www.nthistorymuseum.org 

A new museum of the rich immigrant heritage of North Tonawanda, known as “the Lumber Capital of the World,” and its role as an important shipping and manufacturing center on the Historic Erie Canal and the Mighty Niagara River in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  

Museum Hours: Mondays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to noon

Also open by appointment; admission free; donations accepted

Proud to be a member of the Cultural Alliance of Niagara, Downtown Merchants Association of North Tonawanda and the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas!!

Advance orders now being accepted for second Heritage Cookbook:

“ North Tonawanda Families & Their Favorite Recipes”

Dessert Recipes Sought for Holiday Cookbook: “ North Tonawanda Sweet Treasures”

“ North Tonawanda Ethnic Heritage Cookbook” still selling around the world! 

The North Tonawanda History Museum is now accepting advance orders for its second in a series of heritage cookbooks, “ North Tonawanda Families & Their Favorite Recipes.” The new cookbook will sell for $11 including sales tax. Advance orders may be placed through the Museum. Include $4 for shipping and handling per cookbook. The new cookbook will be released during Canal Fest 2007 as part of its 25 th year celebrations and will be available at the Museum’s booth throughout Canal Fest. Recipes, along with historical notes on individuals, families, and businesses are from a wonderful cross section of North Tonawanda , including workers and owners in businesses on Oliver Street , Payne Avenue , and Webster Street . “Even gentlemen have joined in to have their favorite recipes included,” notes Museum Director Donna Zellner Neal.

The Museum’s first book in the series, “ North Tonawanda Ethnic Heritage Cookbook”, which was first released for sale on January 6, 2005 , has been reprinted four times since. Orders have come in from all over the country, and as far away as Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates for the first cookbook. The unique cookbook contains 115 recipes, with a variety of ethnic flavoring, each including a historical note about the family or individuals contributing or originating the recipe. A brief history of North Tonawanda is included as well. The cookbook is dedicated to Ken Mountain , a 1958 graduate of North Tonawanda High School , who is a Charter member of the new Museum and a researcher/writer for the Museum. He is credited as having suggested the cookbook project. He is now a resident of Texas . Cynthia Fredricks coordinated the creation and compilation of first the cookbook. This first cookbook is still available at the Museum offices at 314 Oliver Street , or by mail for $7 each, including tax. Include $4 for shipping and handling for each cookbook for mail orders. The Museum also accepts Master Card and Visa.

“North Tonawanda Ethnic Heritage Cookbook” and “ North Tonawanda Families & Their Favorite Recipes” will be available with other museum publications at the August 5 “Historic Treasures Tour” of historic homes and at the Museum’s fall programming. The Museums September 20 program, “Dutch Influence on the American Kitchen and Life” will explore the food ways brought to America by the Dutch more than three centuries ago and the way these food ways were adapted to new circumstances. Slides of 17 th century Dutch art works depicting various foodstuffs are part of this program. The program will be presented by food historian, columnist, author, and lecturer Peter G. Rose. Ms. Rose has lectured on a

Variety of topics related to Dutch-American culinary history, at such places as the Smithsonian Institute, the National Gallery of Art, the Culinary Institute of America, New York University , and the New York Historical Society. Her program will be presented in the Sutherland Lodge at 1400 Ruie Road at 6:30 p.m.

The third cookbook in the series, “North Tonawanda Sweet Treasures,” which will sell for $15 is to be released in time for holiday giving in December and should be available during Winter Walk on December 1 and the Museum’s “Forgotten Holidays” program on December 8 (2 p.m.) at Sutherland Lodge, 1400 Ruie Road , a program which explains the practices brought here by Dutch settlers in the 17 th century that had a lasting impact on American life. The program will include the changes that took pace, not only in the present day celebration of Christmas, but also in the festivities surrounding New Year’s, Pinkster (which became an African American holiday) and other events that are cause for celebration, such as the birth of a child. Slides illustrating the various festive occasions are part of the lecture.

Recipes and brief notes on family or individual history from the recipe sources are being accepted for the third cookbook. Recipes for desserts, cookies, breakfast treats, and other sweet items are needed from North Tonawanda residents or former residents. Advance orders may be placed for this cookbook as well for use as holiday gifts.

Barbara Wickman is Heritage Cookbook Committee Chair. Jessica Brant, a North Tonawanda High School student and active Museum volunteer and Danielle Oney, a SUNYAB nursing student and active Museum volunteer are typists.

Call 213-0554 for further information. Advance orders may be phoned in with Master Card of Visa information. Submit new recipes or checks for advance orders to the Museum at 314 Oliver Street.