Abraham Lincoln, Little Falls and Beyond
2025 marks both the 165th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s 1860 election to the presidency and the 160th anniversary of his April 15th, 1865 assassination.
Tag Archive for: Little Falls Historical Society
Rialto memories
When preparing to write this article, I asked readers for their memories of the Rialto and received the following replies.
Rialto was Little Falls’ movie palace
The Gateway Theatre in Little Falls, later to be renamed Rialto, first opened its doors to the public on October 22, 1923.
Little Falls’ South Side in the 1930s – 1940s: A Remembrance of Time and Place
As long as I can remember my father, Joe Vespasiano, loved to share his stories, and he had a lot of material.
Keene, Sullivan, among those who played Little Falls
Two of the famous people who performed in plays in Little Falls were the noted actress Laura Keene, and John L. Sullivan, the heavyweight boxing champion.
Dr. D. Willard Bliss summons Alexander Bell to use his induction-balance device to locate the assassin's bullet, which is something of a metal detector device; unbeknownst to them all, is that Garfield's mattress was lying on top of metal springs, which were uncommon at that time. After 80 days of suffering, he died from infection from the gunshot wound. The D. in the Dr. Bliss' name stands for Doctor, given as his first name at birth.Garfield’s whistle stop – 1880
In the presidential election of 1880, — General James A. Garfield, Republican nominee for president, brought his campaign to Little Falls on August 4 with a “whistle stop” on the New York Central.
First Trolley at Little Falls #24Inter-urban trolley lasted 30 years
The electric trolley started in Little Falls in 1903 with great fanfare, a convenient and, for awhile at least, popular way to travel between Little Falls and points west and south.
Earl Roberts - First Car Manufactured At Little FallsCars still a relative novelty at time of ‘Sociability’ run
Automobiles were still a relative novelty in Little Falls in 1909 when the Smith brothers, proprietors of the Richmond Hotel (later called Hotel Snyder) concocted the idea of a “Sociability” automobile run from the city to Cooperstown and back.
Boy's Basketball Team 1901Little Falls was basketball pioneer
When basketball was new, Little Falls (along with Herkimer) was one of its pioneering communities and had some of its better teams.
Charlie Young: From Undefeated Football Team to Wrestler Revolt–And Beyond
Known as “Chub” by his family and close friends, Charlie taught and coached at LFHS for over two decades, and left an indelible mark.
