Carol Fisher-Linn-
Visit Ellicottville in days gone by through the stories told by Ellicottville Historian, Ellen Frank….
Let’s face it, Ellicottville, although blessed to have a beautiful historical society building in the prominent four corners of the village, has no room for anyone to sit and research. The next best thing, for those who want to know more about the history of this village and its historic buildings is to take part in an historic walk with Ellen Frank on Saturday, September 16th, at 1pm, meeting at the Gazebo in front of the Town Hall.
Ellen Frank, Vice President of the Ellicottville Historical Society and local resident for all her life will guide her guests for a 90-minute walkabout through the streets of the village, telling true stories of the inhabitants and their homes.
No home in the village has as much history as the Baker Leonard house which was the first frame house built in 1817. The story goes that Holland Land Company, which surveyed all the village, wanted Mr. Baker Leonard to build an inn/tavern for them. When the building was finally built, it was over-budget since the lumber used for the building came from a sawmill eleven miles away, in Kill Buck. No roads, no bridges, just trails marked by blazed trees through swamps, up and down hills always with fallen trees that had to be removed to continue passage. Since it was so costly, the Holland Land Company refused to take possession of it. Mr. Leonard had no choice but to keep it as a personal residence. He turned it into a public house and then added Ellicottville’s first grocery store and post office into the building as well. Before the county courthouse was built on the village square, the house was also used for county business until 1820. Stories are told of the local Seneca Indians coming from the reservation in Salamanca to trade and sleep on the floors or on the grounds surrounding the building before returning to their homes. The house is located next to St. John’s Episcopal Church on West Washington Street and has remained in the same family for two hundred years. When you hear the story of St. John’s, you will learn about Gabriel, the bell, rescued from a monastery fire in Spain, brought across the ocean as ships ballast, purchased by a Catholic benefactor, brought by ox cart across mud roads from the Erie Canal drop off in Buffalo, installed in St. John’s, an Episcopal Church (because there was no Catholic church yet) but rung three times a day in honor of the Catholic Angelus (now, just for services), and is still the oldest working bell in the United States.
You will hear about the great fire of 1890 which wiped out a huge portion of Main Street and prompted the ruling to have all new buildings on the strip built of brick. You will hear about the first condominium in New York State right on that same main street. You will imagine the Catholic Church on the other end of town, almost in the middle of the main drag in the location around where Tops Market is now. And the home which no longer stands, right next to Tops that was the actual start of Saint Bonaventure University. A good storyteller can take you back into another era and Ellen Frank is one of the best.
Ellen will also be conducting Ghost walks on Fridays at 7:30pm, again meeting at the Gazebo. Dates: September 29, October 13, October 20, October 27. For information, you may call Ellen Frank at 716-699-2276 or 716-474-8528. Don’t be scared.
The Ellicottville Museum is open from June through September. Society meetings are held the first Wednesday of the month, 7pm, at the Ellicottville Memorial Library on Maples Road. This month’s meeting is September 6th. Ellen Sirianni Frank will be speaking about her WWII hero dad, Dan Sirianni, who was shot down and lived to tell it and later became President of the Historical Society for many years. Anyone is welcome to become a member of the Historical Society. Find out more on their Facebook page.