Posts by: This Day In History 
This Day in History – September
Sept. 1st 1821 A company of Indian chiefs passed through the village on their way to New York City to take part in a conference with the whites. They stayed at the MacKinister Tavern and attracted a great deal of attention. 1872 Belle Boyd, the…
This Day in History – August
Aug. 1st 1836 Regular passenger train service on a single track of the Schenectady – Utica division of the Mohawk & Hudson Railroad was inaugurated in Little Falls and the Mohawk Valley. Construction and freight trains had been running for some time. The first Mohawk…
This Day in History – July
July 1st 1816 There were two taverns in Little Falls, one was the “American House” at the northwest corner of John and Ann streets, and the other “Cranes” on Main Street. 1842 Washington Hall was built at the northwest corner of Mill and Ann streets…
This Day in History – June
June 1st 1870 The employees at the Herkimer County National Bank are being granted vacations. Two weeks are being allotted to the cashier and one week to the clerks. 1878 The first person to have a telephone in Little Falls was Frank Bramer who resided…
This Day in History – May
May 1st 1846 S. F. Bennet, begs leave to inform the citizens of Little Falls and vicinity, that he is now receiving a very extensive stock of Books and Stationary, cheap Literature, Toys and Fancy Goods, Looking Glasses, Hard Ware, Woolen Ware, and every description…
This Day in History – April
April 1st 1813 Samuel Smith was appointed the third postmaster in Little Falls. 1913 The water in the Mohawk River is believed to have been the highest since the great flood of 1865. John Stark, official water gauger for the city, reports a depth of…
This Day in History – March
Mar. 1st 1814 At a meeting, residents of Little Falls gave their consent and professed a desire to erect a library in the village. 1839 Richard Ray Ward transferred land to Nicholas Devereaux for a Catholic cemetery in Little Falls. Note: The one-half acre of…
Little Falls Historical Society’s 2024 Annual Report
“Little Falls is a picturesque, historic city, the most beautifully situated of any town on the New York to Buffalo route.” Nelson Green from his 1924 OLD MOHAWK TURNPIKE BOOK By any measure, 2024 was a benchmark year for the Historical Society. Interesting first-time highlights…
This Day in History – February
Feb. 1st 1892 The first electric lights were turned on at 7:46 PM, “illumed the streets of the village”, with the Electric Committee having the honor of throwing the switch. The Thompson-Houston system has 83 lights with several more to be added. Little Falls’ citizens…
This Day in History – January
Jan. 1st 1816 A report for 1815 showed Herkimer County had forty-three slave holders having fifty-three slaves valued at $8,465. Slaves and horses were about equal value. The county was divided into six slave towns (Columbia, Fairfield, German Flatts, Herkimer, and Schuyler) and five free…