Niagara Frontier
Historic New York
The Niagara River between Lakes Ontario and Erie was the natural route to the interior of the continent. Following the arrival of French explorers in 1678, missionaries, traders, troops and settlers traveled by its waters. At the outlet of the Niagara River into Lake Ontario, the French in 1726 built Fort Niagara. A strategic post during the inter-colonial wars, it was captured by the British in 1759. During the American Revolution it was used as a base for British raids and was finally surrendered to the United States in 1796.
Buffalo, at the Lake Erie end of the Niagara River, was opened to settlement by the Holland Land Company in 1803-04. During the War of 1812, Buffalo, like other Niagara Frontier communities was burned. A period of remarkable growth began when Buffalo became the western terminus of the Erie Canal in 1825.
Buffalo and its environs developed into a great transportation hub and a center for industry, especially flour milling and steel manufacture, Water power from Niagara Falls generates electricity distributed over a wide area. Educational and cultural institutions combine with the natural setting and economic advantage to make Buffalo the State’s largest city.
Marker can be reached from Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway (Interstate 90 at milepost 412), 10.6 miles west of Alleghany Road (New York Route 77), on the right when traveling west.
Courtesy hmdb.org
