Our Finger Lakes History

While the Erie Canal was the most important canal in Upstate New York, the history behind other canals that ran through the Finger Lakes and their relationship to the Erie is fascinating. In this episode ... more

Canals played a very important part in the rapid and huge economic development of the Finger Lakes in the decades before the Civil War. The Erie Canal was clearly the most important of the canals ... more

Seneca County Historian Walter Gable takes you through the history of country schools in the Finger Lakes. The country school was a very familiar institution in rural American until about 1940, Though most of these ... more

Between 1875 and 1901, Fossenvue was an important summer retreat on Seneca Lake that provided cultural stimulation in a natural setting. Seneca County Historian Walter Gable will explain how a group of seven friends in ... more

It was called a "breath of Paris in the Finger Lakes" during the late 19th century. Built by Arthur E. Valois on the shore overlooking Seneca Lake, the history of Valois Castle has roots in ... more

The amazing story of how Waterloo became known near and far as "the place the whale burned" in the late 1800's. A mammoth whale that was captured by Captain Nickerson off the coast of Cape ... more

The Influenza Pandemic of 1918 and 1919 killed millions of people worldwide and had a big impact on life in the Finger Lakes region. Seneca County Historian Walter Gable describes the local impact through newspaper ... more

The Finger Lakes region is home to dozens of waterfalls but none are more famous as the tallest waterfall east of the Mississippi River, Taughannock Falls. Learn about the complete history of the State Park ... more

Walter Gable takes you through the conditions that created the gorge in Watkins Glen and the history of Watkins Glen State Park that was recently recognized as one of the top 3 state parks in ... more

Born in Fayette in 1821, Robert Seldon Duncanson was one of few African American landscape painters of the nineteenth century, and he achieved levels of success unknown to his contemporaries. In this episode of Our ... more

So many visitors to Seneca Falls have asked local residents and business owners where they would find the waterfalls. In fact, there are no waterfalls in Seneca Falls. But, there used to be. Find out ... more

Did you know that there was a time when you could cross Cayuga Lake by bridge? When it was constructed, the Cayuga Lake Long Bridge was the longest bridge in the Western Hemisphere. Find out ... more

William H. Seward was one of the foremost politicians of 19th century America and his incredible legacy, and all his stuff, is on display at the Seward House Museum in Auburn. Seward made his mark ... more

Learn about the fascinating history of one of the oldest trees in the Finger Lakes, the Scythe Tree in Waterloo, NY. In 1861, according to the plaque at the foot of the tree, "James Wyman ... more

Stephen Harkness, a native of MacDougall, New York in Seneca County, became the second most wealthy American of his time through a partnership with John D. Rockeller of Richford, NY. This episode tells the story ... more