Queen City Tour!(Part 1)

The Queen City tour was an extremely interesting tour. We got to walk around the city and look at different architectural structures. It is crazy to think that all this may not have ever happened if it weren't for DeWitt Clinton though. He was Govenor of New York and supported the the Erie Canal running from The Hudson to Lake Erie. He actually dug out the Buffalo River to make it wide enough for the Canal in order to persuade legislature to vote to have the Canal end in Buffalo. The tour itself started at Market Arcade on Main Street. It was built in 1892 and is three stories tall. Like many other buildings from this time it had a sky light due to electricity not really being available yet. The outside of the building was made from terra cotta and had a combination of roman, Greek, and French designs. It was essentially the shopping mall of the day. In many respects it still operates that way, as it houses shops and services. 

The use of terra cotta means that it does have to be restored from time to time die to the expansion and contraction of the material. Luckily one of three companies that produce terra cotta in the U.S. is local!

Our next stop was the Buffalo Savings Bank. Now it is part of M&T Bank. This building was constructed in 1901 and has operated as a bank since then! In 1998 the dome was changed to a gold dome costing half a million dollars! It is remarkable that after all these years it is still in operation. In fact if it weren't for the prominence of te banks in Buffalo and Western NY we may not be so lucky to have as much preservation of history as we do. The banks are huge supporters of culture and history in Buffalo! 

Next we passed the Hyatt Hotel. To my surprise that wasn't always the Hyatt hotel. In fact it used to be the log Genessee Office Building. Whatever they did to restore or renovate the outside with made the building look brand new! This building as well as the Market Arcade were both designed by Green and Wicks, prominent architects in Buffalo. 

Next we took a look at the Electric Tower. This was a built in 1912, and the extensions or wings coming off the tower were added later on. It was originally owned by Buffalo Electric, later Niagara Mohawk. What's amazing is the interior is made from marble, but through the years the marble was covered with dry wall as styles changed. The outside is made of white glaze terra cotta. Terra cotta seems to be a theme in Buffalo. Eventually the building was in really bad shape and bought, fixed up, stripping the dry wall down to show the true beauty of the building. Today every floor and office space is rented out in the building! 

Before the next main stop on our visit we took a brief look at the Civil War Memorial in Buffalo, as well as where the Knox family got there start. And if you're from Buffalo you most likely know them as the family who brought hockey to Buffalo, giving us the Buffalo Sabres! The Civil War monument is pretty amazing. At the base there are four men, representing the cavalry, infantry, artillery, and navy. The other building was the building where the Knox family got there businesses started. If you ever get the chance you should visit there farm in East Aurora. It is a public park now, and it's beautiful. 

The next main stop was the Hotel Lafayette. It stands where the old French church once stood. The hotel was actually supposed to be done for the Pan-American Exposition in 1901, but was not finished until 1904. It was actually considered the best hotel in the U.S. For many years, and even after that remained in the top 15. It wasn't until the 1950s that it fell into disrepair. What's interesting is that the hotel was designed by Louise Bethune, a female architect. In fact she was the first female architect! About 3 or 4 years ago I actually went and saw the special exhibit they had of her at the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society. She is a very impressive person. By 2010 the hotel pretty much became a dump site for the homeless, and I am not exaggerating about that. Fortunately it was finally redone, costing over 30 million dollars to restore it to its original glory. The hotel is done in style of a wedding boutique. Meaning you could get your attire, cake, and everything else for your wedding done at the hotel. 

The inside is equally as impressive as the outside. The main lobby has the original chandelier and elevators. The elevators were installed in 1920. Even a painting that was in the hotel was restored. The most amazing part about that is it was done by a French painter during the 1880's! In one of the banquet halls the chandeliers were original. Impressively 2/3 of the crystals on these chandeliers remained intact. The floors were also original, and the tiles are from Turkey. Not shockingly, the hotel was owned by a man who made his money in the distillery business. So during prohibition the hotel operated as a speakeasy also. There is proof of that ok one of the staircases. You can see the trim around the wall, which would be where the false floor would be put.