McKinley Monument

McKinley Monument, Niagara Square

The Egyptian revival obelisk stands 96' high at the center of Niagara Square. The marble monument, flanked by sculptures of four sleeping lions, was dedicated on September 6th 1907. President William McKinley was shot at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo on that date six years previous. The sculpture stands as a tribute to the man and the lasting reverence the city and the nation had for the 25th President of the United States.

North Park

Ceiling Mural North Park Theater

Toaday was a good day to catch a film. Everyday is a good film day at Buffalo's cinema treasure, the North Park Theater. Look up from your seat and you'll see five of the six murals created by Raphael Beck. Prophetically named for the famed painter Raphael, Beck definitely left his mark on Buffalo history. Beck became well known for the official logo of The Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo. He also immortalized President William McKinley in the assasinated President's final portrait based on sketches the artist made from his visit to the Exposition. The portrait was exhibited in The U.S. Senate and then became property of the Buffalo History Museum. The Beck story is just one of the many artistic journeys the North Park evokes. The theater is not only a place of entertainment but is also part museum, architectural tresure and historical site.

https://www.northparktheatre.org

President William McKinley, Shot on this Day

Memorial plaque on the site where McKinley was shot 

President McKinley was shot in Buffalo in this day in 1901, 115 years ago.  Through a series of missteps in his care, the popular president succumbed to  infection from his wounds . Attending the Pan-American Exposition, the president, who had been stalked by anarchist Leon Czolgosz, was approached and assassinated. The location of the attack was the Exposition's Temple of Music, now marked by a simple stone in the middle Fordham Street. This former Pan-Am location is lined with lovely bungalow -style homes dating back to the neighborhood's development in the years after the fair.