Dec. 2nd

1873

Architect and builder William Metcalf made a critical examination of the condition of the brick St. Mary’s church and declares it to be unsafe. He indicated that he has never seen such a flimsy job in all his experience. Built by Amsterdam and Little Falls contractors at a cost of $70,000.

1903

The weather is getting cold and tramps are no longer welcome in Little Falls. The “tramp room” at police headquarters has been closed because of perceived unhealthy conditions, and about twenty tramps were turned away last night by Chief Halling. The Charity Board refused to do anything in the matter.

1935

A & P recipes advertised for the week, across the country by the super market chain, include a dessert of Caramel Junket with Maple Syrup. Junket is made in Little Falls by Chris. Hansen Laboratories.

Dec. 3rd

1878

The General Z. C. Priest Steamer Company has obtained permission to use the basin on East Mill Street for a skating rink. They are erecting a large building that will be well heated and have rooms to put on skates.

1889

The “Eastern Improvement Company” has purchased 100 acres around the “burnt rocks” and propose to make well graded streets and divide the property into building lots. Principles involved include George A. Hardin, David H. Burrell, J. J. Gilbert, Robert MacKinnon, Victor Adams, Albert Story, G. Fred Girvan, and M. G. Bronner.

1920

Before a large gathering, the cornerstone laying exercises were held at the West Monroe Street school building with Mayor Gilbert as principal speaker. School pupils sang several patriotic selections. The building opened in 1921.

Dec. 4th

1885

Peter J. Casler, the owner of the Grand Central Hotel, has received a summons for violating fish & game laws for using dynamite to illegally kill and remove fish from Piseco Lake. Casler denied the charges.

1923

Willard Levee, Jeweler and Importer, located at 562 East Main Street in Little Falls, offers Ever-Sharp pens at $1, Wahl pens at $4, and solid gold Wahl pens at up to $50 at his shop. Mr. Levee recently returned from an around the world tour visiting many gem markets.

1980

If the latest “unofficial” census figures are correct Little Falls  has lost 1,476 residents in the past ten years – from 7, 629 in 1970 to the current 6,153. As a whole, Herkimer County lost 1,015 people. Mayor Wind rejected the census figure for the city and will initiate a locally-conducted count.

2007

At a Common Council meeting, Mayor Ted Wind retired after 45 years of public service as alderman, county legislator, and long-time mayor of Little Falls.

Dec. 5th

1941

Little Falls police and firemen were asking for a 15 percent raise in pay, from $132 per month to $151.80 per month.

Dec. 6th

1841

A large number of unoccupied lots in the outpart of the village, formerly owned by Ellice and more recently by R. R. Ward, were sold at auction. A greater part of the property around the village is now owned by resident citizens. Building in the past year has surpassed that of prior years.

1907

Central New York Telephone Company’s new handsome and commodious building on South Second Street is ready for use. There are 12 operators’ positions and capacity for 2,500 phones. The cost for the site, building, and apparatus was $34,500.

Dec. 7th

1887

Impressive services were held by the Knights Templar at the Little Falls Baptist church for General Zenas C. Priest, long active in local, state, and national affairs. Attending were President Chauncey Depew of the N.Y.C. & H.R. Railroad, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and many other dignitaries who were greeted by several hundred mourners at the passenger depot.

1941

WW II era – Little Falls citizens reacted with horror as reports came in concerning the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the beginning of World War II. Local residents were slowly receiving word about the fate of their relatives in Hawaii.

Dec. 8th

1896

The notorious “Pastime Club” in Little Falls was shut down following the conviction of its promoters for the use of nefarious implements in their gambling den. It seems that a clever magnetic device was being used at the dice table to fleece the young men who frequented the place. Police are raiding other such “clubs” throughout the city.

1899

Do not forget the high school congress debate tonight at the Quackenbush Hall. The question is the Transvaal question. The proceeds are for the high school decoration fund.

Dec. 9th

1848

The Ladies Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church of this village will hold a fair for the sale of useful and fancy articles at the Benton House.

1881

The Catholic bell now rings every morning at half past six, at noon and at 6:30 in the evening. It is a much pleasanter way of announcing the time than by the screams of the mill whistles every one of which is blown at a different time.

1898

For the past several weeks, Professor Sugarman , a practicing eye specialist in Little Falls, has been amazing local residents by taking daily plunges in the icy Mohawk River. He is a firm believer and advocate of the curative powers of cold water. The colder the atmosphere the more he seems to enjoy the bath.

1916

Henry Hondorf, of Jersey City, foreman of the structural iron workers building the new City Hall, died as a result of a fall from the top of the structure.

2005

Artist Stephen “Pitt” Nicholas has created a 34- foot mural on the west side of the 1855 stone building housing the Little Falls Antique Center. Nicholas’ piece relates the river and time to the historical area.

Dec. 10th

1872

The officers chosen for the coming year for the Young People’s Christian Association include: D. H. Burrell (President), Titus Sheard and T. M. Chapman (Vice Presidents), R. S. Whitman (Treasurer), Warren Griswold ( Secretary), and M. H. Smith (Librarian.)

1897

Jacob Brown has a force of twenty-six men engaged in quarrying stone in the J.H. Smith quarry on Burwell Street. He expects to have 40 quarrymen at work, and twenty teams drawing the stone, which are to be used in the canal enlargement.

1910

The Utica Gas & Electric Company is building a new power house on West Mill Street at the foot of 5th Street. An injunction has been granted to prohibit the company from getting water to turn the three turbine wheels. The company expects to surmount the legal barrier and obtain the water rights.

1923

The local Americanization program was discussed at a meeting of the Exchange Club. It was reported that there were 3,538 foreign born persons residing in Little Falls – 879 Poles, 605 Italians, 541 Bohemians, 279 Slovaks, 205 Germans, and 108 Russians (probably Ukrainians).

Dec. 11th

1851

”Old Joe” Vosburg will be on hand to welcome old friends and the community to his bowling saloon under the Rockton House. The alleys are in first grade order, and his chief cook, David Jones Esq. is there too.

1885

Electric arc lights had been used at night to build/ blast the West Shore Railroad through Little Falls. On this date, the New York Central Railroad secured a 99-year lease of the West Shore.

Dec. 12th

1843

Abbey Kelly, Abolitionist and Quaker, is at the Washington Hall today and tomorrow.

1881

Little Falls continued to hold the foremost place as a cheese market. During the year 15,181,500 pounds of factory cheese was sold here at an average price of 0.108933 cents per pound. The value was $1,653,184.17. This is solid money paid to our dairymen creating a great degree of prosperity. In addition a large quantity of dairy cheese was sold.

1941

WW II era – About 500 Little Falls area young men gathered at the American Legion to sign up for work in some branch of service in the local defense program. They expressed willingness to “anything, anytime.” A hundred men at Hansen’s also volunteered.

Dec. 13th

1939

Born in Little Falls in 1886, and brought up here, internationally renowned architect Dwight James Baum has died. He designed many homes, hospitals, college buildings, and pavilions for the 1939 World’s Fair, but his most famous work was the Ca d’Zan in Sarasota, Florida for John Ringling of circus fame.

2002

Partners Trust Financial Group, the holding company for the Savings Bank of Utica, announced that it has received the required regulatory approvals to acquire Herkimer County Trust Company of Little Falls. The parties expect to close the transaction before year-end. HCTC was in business 169 years.

Dec. 15th

1891

The toboggan chute off East Monroe Street is ready for  business. Water pipes have been laid so the slide can be sprinkled and kept in condition. Tobogganing will doubtless be one of our popular winter sports.

1931

An ambulance, once owned by the Mary Imogene Bassett hospital in Cooperstown, has been refinished inside and out,  and was donated to the city by Dr. H. W. Vickers. The firemen will care for the machine.

1933

Fifty-five men went to work on approved CWA projects in the city. These tasks include construction of the Summit Avenue storm sewer, building new sewer manholes, and graveling roads within the city. Working six hours a day for five days a week, foremen receive $1.20 an hour and laborers 53 cents an hour.

1949

John Crowley, Editor and chief stockholder of the Evening Times for nearly sixty years passed away today. He influenced much of what went on in Little Falls through his stinging editorials in his newspaper.

2007

The inaugural “Christmas in Little Falls” celebration was held.

Dec. 16th

1886

About one thousand people were present at the public meeting under the auspices of the Knights of Labor, at the Skinner Opera House. The assemblage was addressed by Mr. T. B. Barry who talked about the local labor situation, and his unsuccessful attempts to meet and negotiate with head of the Little Falls Manufacturers Association.

Dec. 17th

1845

The first electric communication through Little Falls was the telegraph line of the Utica and Schenectady railroad. A contract was made on this date and the telegraph line was installed in 1846.

1917

A good number of recently built US submarine chasers, moving down the canal, stopped in Little Falls on their way to New York City. They will bolster our shore defenses.

Dec. 18th

1830

Disgusted with alien ownership, Little Falls citizens met to petition the New York State legislature to enforce the Alien Land Law of 1817.

1896

James Riley has secured, for the sum of $25, the privilege from the State, of using the part of the canal known as Leigh’s Level for an ice skating rink. Little Falls school children are allowed free at specific times. The general public is to pay an admission charge of five cents for using the rink. 

Dec. 19th

1898

The old Girvan House suffered severely from fire forcing forty-five guests and other inmates out into the cold. The fire was believed to have started in the rear of Joe Wright’s fruit store.

1933

It’s full speed ahead to get the Melrose Slipper company of New York City into operation in Little Falls. All doubts about the ability of the company to secure a sufficiency of help would seem to be removed by the number of applications made to the company’s New York office. 125 to 150 jobs are projected.

1941

WW II Era – A record 181 trains on the New York Central line passed through Little Falls in a single day.

Dec. 20th

1855

General Z.C. Priest received $166.66 per month as Assistant Superintendent of the railroad.

1910

Some weeks ago, the Presbyterian church society purchased a large lot on Jackson Street upon which a parish house was to be erected. An announcement was made today, with a change of plans, that David H. Burrell has donated $50,000 to cover the expense of a project which became the fully equipped Y.M.C.A. on the site.

1920

Headlines screamed ”PHOENIX MILLS CLOSE FOR INDEFINITE PERIOD” as about 1000 hands were unemployed, heralding the beginning of a major business depression. Three months later, the workers returned to work accepting a 23% reduction in wages rather than remaining unemployed.

Dec. 21st

1933

Seventy members of the Exchange Club voiced their displeasure with the national organization and decided to focus their efforts and energy on local affairs. Thus, the Little Falls Civic Club was formed. The organization worked diligently to make the city a better place to work, live, and play for all of its citizens. Top graduating students were awarded scholarships each year.

2007

The South Ann Street, Mill Street Historic District in Little Falls, better known as “Canal Place,” has been recommended to be placed on the State and National Registers. The registers are the official list of buildings, structures, districts, landscapes, and sites in the historic area. Formal approval came in July 2008.

Dec. 22nd

1887

The “toney” Q. V. Society, which is composed of many of our most reputable young men, gave a reception at their new hall in the Skinner block. It was a very delightful event, and nearly one-hundred people were present to enjoy it. The hall was beautifully decorated for the occasion, and music and refreshments were all that could be asked for.

1990

At a convention in San Antonio, Texas, Little Falls native Bernard J. “Bud” Malone, Jr., Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York, received an “Award of Honor” from the United States Department of Justice for his outstanding work in investigation and prosecution of major drug traffickers.

1991

Six children in the McLeod family, ages 1 to 10, died in an early morning fire that tore through their two-story home on East Monroe Street. A fourteen year-old boy who was babysitting them was the only one to escape alive.

Dec. 23rd

1869

As gold goes down so do oysters. M. B. Tyson receives and sells more oysters daily than any other dealer in Little Falls. He sells solid meat oysters for 37 ½ cents per quart, extra count oysters for 44 cents per quart. No credit on oysters.

1899

The H. P. Snyder bicycle works shipped ten carloads of bikes to the Simmons Hardware Company of St. Louis. The 1,500 machines constitute a part of the big contract with Simmons.

1912

Four strikers from the Phoenix and Gilbert mills at Little Falls, who had been arrested for merely making speeches, were released without a trial. They were neither tried nor released on bail, they were just “shooed” out of the court room.

1918

Mayor Zoller and the Aldermen met at the new City Hall to pay their respects to David H. Burrell, whose generosity had made the building possible.

Dec. 24th

1915

A big crowd assembled around the community Christmas tree in Eastern Park to sing songs and celebrate the Yuletide. It was a fitting manifestation of the Spirit of Peace and Good Will. The large tree was realized through the donations of businesses and citizens alike.

1962

Michael Denapole, a Little Falls farmer, is in “only fair condition” after a light plane he was piloting crashed shortly after takeoff from his private airstrip on Cole Road in the Town of Fairfield.

1969

Little Falls native SSgt. Joseph Stanley “Stash” Zawtocki, Jr. perished of starvation in a Viet Cong prison camp after 22 months of imprisonment in The jungles of South Vietnam.

1971

Edward and Adam Kolkowski lost their lives today while returning from Christmas shopping in Herkimer. Their Volkswagen Beetle was struck head-on when another vehicle crossed a double line passing a car on a blind curve. Ed was 24 years old and Adam was 22.

Dec. 25th

1847

The first mass was said in the newly built small wood-frame church (24 X 36 feet) for the Roman Catholics in the community.  Father John McMenamin had raised the money for the church, including $300 by soliciting and preaching in Vermont and Connecticut. Whether the lot, the site of the current St. Mary’s church, was purchased from or was a gift of Richard Ray Ward is uncertain.

1879

The first mass was celebrated at the cathedral-like St. Mary’s Roman Catholic church at the corner of East Main and John streets. Construction has been ongoing for more than five years. The 180 feet high steeple, with its gilded cross, was not completed until 1901.

Dec. 26th

1911

The Greek Catholic Association has purchased from the Titus Sheard estate for $375, a plot of land on Furnace Street, opposite the Sheard dam, as a site for a new Greek Catholic church. There are about 200 members of the church in Little Falls, composed of Greeks and Russians.

1960

Tragedy was narrowly averted at the Little Falls railroad station when a fast eastbound train barely missed a good-sized group of persons preparing to board a west bound train which was just coming to a stop. In order to board their train the local passengers had to cross the rails the speeding eastbound train was on.

Dec. 27th

1911

St. Mary’s new School Hall opened with a dance and a party.

Dec. 28th

1885

Rebecca Batteson, the old colored woman, died at the Johnson house on Second Street. Her son-in-law, Robert Johnson, stated that Becky was 117 years old and that she saw General George Washington when he arrived in Hudson, New York after independence was declared. Her precise age was not positivity known, but she was easily the oldest inhabitant in the village.

1888

Few people have an idea of the large amount of money that is being sent from Little Falls and villages along the Central railroad to New Orleans for lottery tickets. Prizes are drawn now and then, but so far New Orleans appears to have the best of the bargain.

Dec. 30th

1937

Homer P. Snyder passed away. He came to Little Falls in 1886, at age 23, as superintendent of the Saxony knitting mill. In 1896, he teamed with Michael Fisher to manufacture safety or “low” bicycles, and later formed the H. P. Snyder Co., a major bicycle supplier in the country. He served in Congress from 1915 to 1925 where he championed the cause of the American Indians.

1985

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has unanimously affirmed the decision favoring the City of Little Falls against the Town of Salisbury for a reduction in assessments on the city’s water system properties in that town. The total reduction in assessments amounted to $427,700.

Dec. 31st

1634

Dutch explorer Harmen Meyndertsz van den Bogaert left Fort Orange (Albany), and passed around the little falls, possibly south of Fall Hill, while visiting Iroquois Indian villages on his way to Oneida Lake. Most likely, he was the first white person to have visited this area.

1863

Dr. Maungwaduas, of the Chippewa nation, will have medicines for sale all this winter at a home on Gibraltar  Street , south side of the river, in Little Falls. The medicines are of roots and herbs for many diseases belonging to this country. Printed directions will accompany the medicines.

1896

The Register of Vital Statistics reported 171 deaths in Little Falls during 1896, including 31 deaths of children under the age of seven. The death rate was 17.1 per 1000 population. Twenty-one died in accidents, 23 from pneumonia, and 18 of consumption. Various other forms of lung trouble caused a good portion of the deaths.

This Week in History” is brought to you by the Little Falls Historical Society. Please Visit the Little Falls Historical Society Website and please consider supporting the Museum by becoming a Member. Download the membership form here!