Happy New Year

All Hallow's Eve

The Celtic New Year is upon us. Samhain marks the beginning of the dark half of the year, a time for introspection. To the Druids and their descendants, it was the day when the veil between the worlds of the living and dead was its thinnest, allowing otherworldly spirits to walk amongst us, not to mention an assortment of fae or wee folk. They believed these mystical, humanesque creatures of the faery world moved about us unknown and unhidden on this day.  What we do know for sure is that our own wee folk are out collecting treats, so beware (be aware).

Haunted Terminal

Central Terminal

Buffalo's once glorious Central Terminal is regarded by ghost hunters as one of the most haunted locales in Western New York's most haunted city. The Art Deco  beauty began its life  in 1929. At its height, it was transporting ten thousand people a day until it became a ghost itself in 1979. The building has been at the center of several revitalization attempts over the years and is definitely haunted by the ghosts of 70's recession and poor decisions. Hopefully the old building will rise from the dead and find its re-purpose in the new Buffalo.

http://buffalocentralterminal.org/

Cemetery Gates

Forgotten Headstone Forest Lawn

               So we go inside and we gravely read the stones

All those people all those lives

Where are they now?

With the loves and hates

And passions just like mine

They were born

And then they lived and then they died...   

- The Smiths

                                  
                                  

Variety Kids Telethon Halloween

Conneticut Street Armory

Halloween comes early to the Conneticut Street Armory. The annual costume party, hosted by Shredd and Ragan of 103.3 Radio, happens Saturday night at our own haunted castle of the West Side. The bash benefits the Variety Kids Telethon with all proceeds collected. There will be live bands, food, prizes for costumes and plenty of pagan shananigans to go around.

http://varietybuffalo.org/wp/buffalos-biggest-halloween-bash/

Merge

Light @ Merge
Merging art, health and sustainability on Delaware Avenue.

http://www.mergebuffalo.com/

Cottage

1882 William Fraser

This Second Empire style cottage is on Cottage Street. The mixed bag that is Allentown architecture is a window into the early days of the city. The neighborhood actually traces its origins back to the days when the area was the dividing line between the village of Blackrock and village of Buffalo. Land moved through private ownership by Thomas Day, then Lewis Allen, becoming part of the town of Blackrock. It eventually was incorprated into growing city of Buffalo. 1853 found Buffalo  a rapidly expanding municipality with the neighborhoods as diverse in people as architectural styles. These beautiful old homes, many small cottage-like dwellings, still stand on the  narrow streets and alleys of these earliest of residential settings.

Buffalo River

Buffalo River

Remnants of the past on the Buffalo River

Smashing Pumkins, Not

Safety First

Halloween is coming. Days are getting shorter. Be safe out there.
Love, BDP

Rain, Rain

Rainy Hertel Ave.
This is the most rain we have seen in months.

Autumn scene

Darkened Hoyt Lake in Early Autumn

The  rowboats removed. The weather settling in. Autumn on Hoyt Lake. Buffalo, New York. 

Old Editions

Old Editions Bookshop and Cafe

Downtown, you will find a peaceful paradise of old and rare books, along with maps and prints to pour over.
Old Editions is a well organized sanctuary for book lovers and collectors. The collection is housed in a lovely old 1897 buiding on E. Huron and Oak St.
“Read the best books first, or you may not have a chance to read them at all.” -Henry David Thoreau


http://oldeditions.com/

Restaurant Week

Coco

Restaurant week runs from October 7-23. Check out the list of local eateries and their offerings. Stop in for a taste of Buffalo's culinary renaissance a la independent restaurants.

http://www.localrestaurantweek.com/restaurants.html

Autumnal Light

Statue at Pratt Monument Forest Lawn

In the evening autumn light, stands one of the four sentinal statues that surround the Pratt Family plot at Forest Lawn Cemetary.

Hostel Buffalo

Hostel Buffalo

A not-for-profit hostel on Main Street in Downtown Buffalo serves visitors from around the country and across the globe. The cozy accomadations in an historic building offer an affordable option for travellers with the convenience of many walkable destinations and access to public transportation, which includes the subway right outside the door. The hostel boasts a communal kitchen and free bicycle sharing amongst its amenities. The hostels inviting presence at 667 Main Street is tucked in between the Town Ballroom and Hearth and Press in the heart of Buffalo's Theater District.

http://www.hostelbuffalo.com/

Wilkeson Pointe Park

Wind Sculptures Wilkeson Pointe

The formerly desolate storage grounds for the ice boom are now an artistically crafted green space open to the public. Wilkeson Pointe Park along with the adjoining Times Beach Nature Preserve are part of the Outer Harbor and in larger context are integral pieces of the Industrial Heritage Trail along the Lake Erie waterfront. Here you will find fantastic views of the lake, shoreline and the edge of the city. Amidst the surprisingly natural landscaping are wind sculptures, carved marble remnants, Onondaga Limestone groupings, pathways, a fishing pier, as well as several play areas. In the summer months one can find a beer garden on the grounds and kayak /bike rentals are available. The Buffalo Ferry, also makes a stop at the Pointe.

http://outerharborbuffalo.com/

Another REAL cafe- yes please.

Hearth and Press Café

Minimalism at it's most delicious resides in the heart of the Theater District on Main Street. Heart and Press was making friends and breaking hearts with their fresh take on some classic cuisine. A fine tuned menu delivers exactly what you didn't know you wanted. Simple to the point with fresh ingredients from the French 77 to the most delectable prosciutto arugula pizza you've ever had here in our city. A doting, self-affacing staff just adds to the charm of this well designed, unpretentiously hip spot that can't decide if it's a cafe or a restaurant and we are fine with that. It works.

Casino Delaware Park

View from Casino Delaware Park

The Casino built in 1901 by Green and Wicks as part of the Pan-American Exposition was renamed Marcy Casino for William L. Marcy, Jr.  The Delaware District Councilman had worked for restoration projects in and around Delaware Park in the 70s and 80s.

Fall is time for change

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/city-of-buffalo-resolution/?source=search

Today, on this so called holiday, we invite you to sign the petition to chance this day to Indigenous People's Day in Buffalo, NY>

Cinema Verité

George Segal @ the Knox

Speaking of film festivals and cinema...

We caught these visitors to the Albright-Knox contemplating a George Segal sculpture. The artist, who pioneered the use of plaster bandages as a medium, grew up in the Bronx, son of Jewish immigrants. From a family butcher shop to a poultry farm in New Jersey to Cooper Union, Segal's  journey to central artist in the Pop Art movement is a very interesting American tale, worthy of a film itself.

albrightknox.org

Buffalo International Film Festival

North Park Marquee

Buffalo International Film Festival begins today. Many great films to be seen, in an equally great setting. The North Park Theater, as well as Hallwalls and Squeeky Wheel, will host  the BIFF throughout the weekend featuring a steady stream of international, national and local Indy films. Check out the BIFX site for the extraordinary line up of films.

http://buffalointernationalfilmfestival.com/lineup/

St. Casimir

In late 1800s, the Polish community that would become known as Kaisertown, founded the Roman Catholic parish of St. Casimir. The parish home went from a small church and school in 1890 to the imposing and beautiful ,  that stands on Casimir Street between Cable and Weimar. The cornerstone of the existing structure was set in 1927.  Architect Chester Oakley brought to fruition, the vision of the church's pastor Rev. Anthony Majewski. With an extensive knowledge of church design gleaned from his travels from Europe to Constantinople, Majewski, through Oakley, constructed a unique place of worship. As one passes through the still modest neighborhood, you are struck by the arresting exotic nature of the facade. A notable visitor to the church was Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, later to become Pope John Paul II. In 2014 the venerated Pontiff achieved Sainthood. A room in the rectory, where the future canonized Pope slept, is now open to the public. 

http://www.stcasimirbuffalo.com/

Crew Buffalo

Crew at Dusk, Buffalo River

Another beautiful day in Buffalo, and many making hay. One of our numerous crew teams rows their way down the Buffalo River and back to Buffalo Scholastic Rowing Association launch in the Old First Ward. BSRA was digging in the Old Ward even before many of the great revitalization projects had taken off.  Just down the lake, inside the Bird Island Pier, you'll find another crew club. The West Side Rowing Club is home to many high school teams as well as adult rowing groups. At the very end of Porter Avenue, with use of Frank Lioyd Wright's historic Fontana Boathouse, WSRC is impressively ensconsed on the peaceful waters inside the breakwall at the mouth of the Niagara River. On an early evening, drive down the 190 and you will see the majestic sight of athletes gliding across the surface of the water under the Peace Bridge with the mighty flow of the river on its way to Niagara Falls.

http://www.rowbuffalo.com/
http://www.wsrc.org/

Our 100th Post

Canalside - Buffalo

Today is post 100 and we were back down at Canalside. On post 3, we captured the first day of summer with the boardwalk and surrounding area teaming with people. There were plenty of folks out on this beautiful day as well, but vendors have closed up shop for the fall. In a city that appreciates fine weather, there was no shortage of kayakers, boaters, bikers and walkers. The rest of the week promises to bring more of the same, so get out there and enjoy. Thank you for following! Please subscribe to get all of our posts to share with your Buffalo friends near and far.

Tri-Main Center

Tri-Main Center

The faded letters spelling Ford are still visible on the old smokestack of the Tri-Main Center. Henry Ford commissioned architect Albert Kahn in 1915 to design the facility that would go on to produce hundreds of thousands of Model Ts and Model A Fords. In the years leading up to and during World War II, Bell Aircraft occupied the space and was followed by Trico until 1988. The Tri-Main Center celebrated its 25th year in its current manifestation as Buffalo's original repurposing success story. Tri-Main has been a blueprint for the revitalization of local manufacturing spaces. On the 2000 block of Main St., the building is home to over 100 artist studios, workshops and businesses in its sprawling 575,000 square feet.

http://trimaincenter.com/

Albright-Knox Art Gallery

Albright-Knox /  R. Delaunay, Soleil,Tour, Aeroplane (foreground)

Even people unfamiliar with Buffalo attribute a couple of things to our fare city. "It's near Niagara Falls...Annie Defranco is from there, right...oh yeah,you have the Albright-Knox..." And with its new endowment, the ABK is set to expand and become even more important.
The Albright-Knox is our treasure full of treasures. The Beaux Arts building itself, built at the turn of the twentieth century, is the product of two seminal architectural and artistic giants, E.B Green and Augustus Saint-Gaudens. The interior, of course, is home to one of the most spectacular and eclectic collections of artwork in the  country.  From Jacques-Louis David to Louise Bourgeois, the expanse is extraordinary and representational of the great artistic movements of the last two hundred years. Van Gogh, Picasso, Homer, Still, Renior, Pollock, Warhol, Modigliani, Miro are some of the heavy hitters, but the gallery is also home to carefully aquired esoteric masterpieces as well. Take a few hours to explore and find solace amongst some of the world's great art treasures at your doorstep.

CDP Theme - Abandoned

H. H. Richardson Complex

In keeping with City Daily Photo's theme for October 1, we have revisited the Richardson Building.
The sprawling series of buildings that make up the grounds of the former Buffalo State Asylum for the Insane, not so long ago, sat in a state of abandonment. Saved from neglect, deterioration, and the wrecking ball, the complex is now in its 10th year of revitalization. The grounds have been restored to a park-like setting and structural feats of engineering have saved the buildings from destruction. Hotel Henry is in the works, as well as other repurposing projects for this Richardsonian Romanesque masterpiece. Look around and see architectural treasures that have been forgotten or destroyed. Look at a building that was nothing but a ghost for 40 years and see it reborn. Know that it is possible.

Olmsted Richardson Complex