The Coming of Railroads: The End of an Era and New Beginnings

Much of the city’s business was impacted by the Erie Canal. From March to November the working week was often increased to seven days and workdays were longer. Before the development of railroads, there was a lull during the winter months when the canal froze over. Railroad service from Albany to Buffalo was in place by 1843. By the 1880s railroads established themselves along waterfront for direct connection to the ships carrying goods and passengers. This lengthened the city’s transshipment calendar to year-round service. The expansion of Buffalo’s Outer Harbor between the 1860s and the turn of the 20th century better connected railroads to grain elevators. This development in combination with the availability of low-cost hydroelectric power from Niagara Falls led to Buffalo becoming a key site for steel manufacturing and flour milling.

Buffalo’s importance as a transshipment port declined somewhat after World War II, but it was the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959 that ended an era. The seaway connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, which allows ships to bypass Buffalo. Unfortunately, Buffalo’s facilities were not ideal for the larger ocean vessels that the seaway serves.

The Canal District has undergone a massive revitalization in recent decades and is now a tourist hub. The site consists of the Buffalo Naval Park, Veteran’s Park, the Marine Drive Apartments, and Canalside. As part of the Canalside project, a portion of the historic canal district was recreated. This includes the installation of a wooden plank dock at the Central Wharf site, the recreation of the Commercial Slip, the building of a Whipple Truss style footbridge, and the historic reconstruction of Lloyd, Hanover, and Prime Streets.