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Buffalo
is a major port city in western New York. It is located at the eastern end of
Lake Erie
on the
Niagara River, which connects Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.
Buffalo
is the second-largest city in New York. It covers an area of 52.5 square miles (136 square kilometers).
Transportation and trade are the main industries of Buffalo. Grains
and raw materials from the west arrive in Buffalo via the Great Lakes. From there, they are shipped through the Welland Ship Canal and the St. Lawrence Seaway
to the
Atlantic Ocean.
Toronto, Canada's
largest metropolitan region, is a short distance to the north.
History
The
Seneca
people, one of the five
Iroquois nations, settled
Buffalo.
The settlement took its name from Buffalo Creek, which is probably a corruption of the original French name for the waterway,
Beau Fleuve,
or "beautiful river." In 1790, the
Holland Land Company
bought the land and laid out a city based on the design of
Washington, D.C.,
the nation's new capital. The
British
burned
Buffalo
during the War of 1812. The settlement was rebuilt and incorporated in 1816.
The
Erie Canal
made
Buffalo
a major link in the trade route between eastern cities and the western frontier. Incorporated as a city in 1832, Buffalo soon became the country's largest center for milling flour. Among its many firsts, Buffalo built the world's first steam-powered grain elevator. A railroad center after 1850, the city supplied the
Union Army with food and equipment during the
Civil War. In the 1890s, the development of hydroelectric power on nearby Niagara Falls helped Buffalo become a major industrial city.As mayor of
Buffalo
in the early 1880s,
Grover Cleveland
was instrumental in reforming the city's government. He later pursued similar reforms as governor of New York State and as president of the United States. The
Pan-American Exposition,
held in Buffalo in 1901, showed off the city as a commercial and industrial power. The goal of the exposition was to foster unity among the people of North and South America.
The completion of the
St. Lawrence Seaway
in 1959 helped
Buffalo
compete as a major port. The new shipping route hurt rail transportation in
Buffalo, though, and many of the city's older industries declined during the 1960s and 1970s. As a result,
Buffalo's population, which had peaked in 1950 at 580,000, fell by more than 40 percent. Today, Buffalo is making an economic comeback by replacing its former heavy industries with high-tech manufacturing and international trade.
Buffalo
is also a major center for banking and higher education.
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With excellent transportation and plentiful power from
Niagara Falls, Buffalo
is still a major industrial city. In addition to milling flour, Buffalo produces chemicals, automobile and aircraft parts, processed foods, paints, and drugs. Much trade between the
United States
and
Canada
passes through
Buffalo
and across the
Peace Bridge over the
Niagara River. Tourism is also important to the local economy. Buffalo offers many opportunities for entertainment and culture. The city is proud of its philharmonic orchestra and its ballet and opera companies.
Shea's Performing Arts Center,
a historic landmark, is at the center of the city's theater district. The
Albright-Knox Art Gallery
owns one of the nation's finest collections of modern art. Each July, the city participates in the Friendship Festival, celebrating the close ties between the United States and Canada. The
Allentown Art Festival
was founded in 1957 by a group of business owners, residents, and artists in the Buffalo area known as Allentown. It has become one of the nation's largest outdoor art and craft shows. The Buffalo Bills of the National Football League play at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park. The Sabres, Buffalo's pro ice-hockey team, play at the
HSBC Arena.
The arena, which opened in 1996, also houses a variety of concerts, ice shows, and other entertainment events.
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