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Island's Original Bridges Are 75 Years Old This Week - July 15, 2010
By Teddy Linenfelser
Early series of photos of the south bridge under construction
Click for larger view
(Left) North Grand Island Bridge with the Niagara Falls terminal on the left. (Right) South Grand Island Bridge connecting to the Island at the lower right of the photo. The photos are part of a 1935 Grand Island bridges brochure of facts including the following: passenger cars 25 cents over two bridges; cost of bridges $3,500,000; length of bridges: north bridge 4000 feet; south bridge: 3400 feet.
Click for larger view
A bridge to Grand Island, New York was first proposed in 1819 and it took “only” 116 years for the north and south Grand Island Bridges to be built and opened to traffic. Proposals for the construction of bridges were also made in 1871 through 1888. Bills were introduced to Congress, meetings were held in Washington, and members of the House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce came to Grand Island to investigate the need for a bridge.
According to the Grand Island Centennial booklet printed in 1952, it was sometime after 1819 that ferry boat service began to operate and serve the people of the Island. The long struggle between then and 1935 when the north and south spans were finally completed, is well documented.
As time went by, it was suggested that the county would build a bridge, or perhaps the state could build a bridge. Then in 1923 the American Niagara Railroad Corporation secured the right from Congress to build bridges across the Niagara from the United States to Canada. Grand Island Supervisor Henry W. Long, and Franklin Sidway and John Schutt, Jr., whom the Town Board sent to Washington on behalf of the bill, returned jubilant over its passage.
The Niagara Frontier Planning Board was created in 1925 by the State Legislature. The Buffalo and Niagara Port Authority in 1928 recommended bridges be built to Grand Island. This was bitterly opposed by the Buffalo Chamber of Commerce. This strong opposition influenced Governor Alfred E. Smith to veto this bill as well as another bill passed by the State Legislature giving a private company the right to build a bridge to Grand Island.
Island officials attended Senate sessions in Albany in 1929 and on March 28 of that year the Schwartz-Frieburg Grand Island Bridge Bill passed with no objection. The creation of the Niagara Frontier Bridge Commission in 1929 was the first tangible progress. It was also in 1929 that the State Legislature appropriated $2,000,000 to be paid in four annual installments of $500,000 to the bridge commission.
The Swartz bill drafted in 1933 by Commissioner Robert Moses, state representative of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (R. F. C.), passed the Legislature, paving the way for the $2,880,000 loan from the R. F. C.
A February 1, 1933 resolution was passed by the Town Board authorizing the Board to call on Assemblyman Arthur Schwartz and Chairman of the State Council of Parks Robert Moses for the purpose of consulting them in reference to a special legislation pertaining to operation and maintenance of the proposed Grand Island Bridges. In June, a communication was received by the Town Board from the war department regarding a public hearing on the modification of plans heretofore approved for construction of the North Grand Island Bridge and the method of handling traffic on the waterway.
Groundbreaking ceremonies for the bridges in 1933 were made possible by the Act of April 12, 1929 signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt, then governor of New York State.
Excavation for the approach of the South Bridge in the Tonawanda Township began in October 1933. The piers for the first South Bridge extend 72 feet below the river bed.
In December 1934 two workmen were killed by a 100-foot fall into the river; one drowned and the other died on the way to the hospital. As many as 800 men were employed during the construction of the bridges.
While the bridges were under construction in 1934, another great work was going on. The highway from bridge to bridge diagonally across the Island was being built at a cost of $405,144. The town board on September 5, 1935 named it "Grand Island Boulevard."
When the Bedell House Hotel burned on June 30, 1935, fire companies from the mainland drove over the south bridge, not yet open to traffic, to offer assistance with the by then completely out of control fire. Grand Island at the time did not have an organized fire company.
For several days, cars were crossing the bridges free of charge. On midnight of July 1, 1935 at exactly 12:02 the first toll was rung up, paid by former resident Mr. Herman Alt of Buffalo.
The Tonawanda-Grand Island Ferry at 5:30 in the evening on July 7, 1935 made its last trip carrying a single passenger, Miss Ellen Nice, 80, the daughter of the town's first supervisor, John Nice.
Town folk and their friends assembled on July 13, 1935 at the town hall where a long procession of automobiles formed. The Riverside Community Band, seated on two flat-bed trucks and under the direction of the late Bill Pinkow, led the procession toward the south bridge, and over to the Tonawandas and through Niagara Falls, then back to the Island over the north bridge to Edgewater Park on the east river shore.
Speakers at the park included Town Supervisor John L. Mesmer, Arthur L. Swartz, Charles Freiberg, Reginald F. Long and Franklin St. John Sidway. Sidway paid tribute to William H. Conboy, a former supervisor who was unable to be present, as the man who worked unceasingly for 37 years to secure a bridge.
A buffet supper was served to more than 2,000 people who attended the picnic in Edgewater Park. Pinkow's band played a concert in the afternoon and a dance band from the same group played for dancing in the evening. Mr. Pinkow, who married the former Marion Alt, served many years as a music instructor in Island schools. With the most recent census numbering 626 residents in 1930, the entire Island seemed to come out and take part in this major celebration.
An official dedication by New York State Governor Herbert Lehman took place two days later on July 15, 1935.
The North Grand Island Bridge was awarded the Class A award from the American Institute of Steel Construction for being the most architecturally beautiful bridge of large size in the United States dedicated during 1935.
Evelyn and Carlton Alt, married June 28, 1935, decided to drive across the new south Grand Island Bridge for a visit to a photographer on Niagara Street, Buffalo. Evelyn said it was late in the afternoon and the workmen "moved a lot of equipment to allow us to pass." Elmer Long was best man and Lorna Alt was maid of honor and also took the trip across the unfinished bridge. They returned via the ferry that brought them back to the Bedell House landing.
The following was printed in a Buffalo, NY newspaper in 1935.
”Wednesday at midnight the two bridges connecting Grand Island with Tonawanda and Niagara Falls will be opened for Fourth of July traffic and the dream of making the island a more integral part of the Niagara Frontier will have been realized.”
A second south bridge was completed in October 1962 and the $7.7 million north span opened two years later, 84, feet west of the original north bridge.
Bridge tolls could be the subject of another long story. The campaigns to have them lowered or removed for Island residents has been ongoing right from the opening of the bridges. The toll that started out at 25 cents per car in 1935, was raised periodically. The new and modern EZpass system for paying the tolls was put into use in 1993 and the cost is nine cents per car.
Major Magazine, The Motor Boat, Features Buffalo Launch Club In 1907
Published twice a month - Located at Tenth and Twenty-fifth, 1133 Broadway, New York at 26th Street
Vol. 4 March 10, 1907 No. 5
Posted February 18, 2010 at Isledegrande.com by Teddy Linenfelser
See BLC Clubhouse 1907 Photo
Situated at the junction of Lake Erie and the beautiful Niagara River, Buffalo occupies a geographical position especially adapted to motorboating, and consequently it is little wonder that several hundred motorboat owners are to be found in Buffalo and the immediate vicinity. From the time the lake and river are free from ice in the spring until they are again rendered unnavigable by winter, motorboat enthusiasts dot the water with their pleasure craft, and here, in the Queen City of the Lakes, is the home of the pioneer motorboat club of America. This organization is the Buffalo Launch Club.In the season of 1903 Dr. Albert E. Hubbard, who is now a past commodore and director of the club, had brought to his mind the idea of an organization of motorboat owners who might talk over their experiences and observations, and thus exchange their knowledge. Following out this thought, and in response to an invitation from Dr. Hubbard, a few motorboat owners met at the boathouse of Captain Hager, Squaw Island, Buffalo, on October 9, 1903. After a brief discussion of the mutual benefit which might be derived from such an organization, it was decided to organize the Buffalo Launch Club, and the following officers were elected to direct the club's affairs: Commodore August C. Hager, Vice Commodore Dr. Albert E. Hubbard, Fleet Captain Albert M. Minton, Secretary Irving J. Mills, Treasurer Frank X Argus, Board of Directors Edward Fitzgerald, John P. Mehrhof, Frederick W. Sherman, Ulysses S. Caudell, Warren Kelley. From this unpretentious beginning the Buffalo Launch Club has grown to a large and thriving organization, and has taken a prominent place among the boating clubs, not only of Buffalo, but of the United States.
In the beginning, the club occupied quarters on Squaw Island, and here it rapidly increased its membership, and established a firm foundation for greater things to come in its more advanced stage of development. Many good races were held, some enjoyable cruises were taken, and much scientific knowledge acquired by the members from the constant interchange of ideas on gasoline motors, boats and similar topics. Dr.Hubbard read before the club a series of lectures on electricity as applied to gas engines. These talks were very helpful to the members.
For more than two years the clubhouse on Squaw Island was the scene of many pleasant gatherings and enjoyable holidays. However, it gradually became apparent to the club that an out-of-the-city clubhouse was needed. So, at an informal meeting, held February 5th, 1906, Commodore Hubbard announced that he had received an offer from the Bedell Estate to sell the club a portion of their property on Grand Island. With but eighteen members present at this meeting, before its adjournment there had been $750 given and $3,000 of bonds subscribed for to buy the new site and erect a clubhouse. The offer was forthwith accepted, and it was not many months before Grand Island was the location of one of the finest clubhouses of its kind in existence.
The building is located on the east bank of Grand Island, facing the east branch of the Niagara River, and within three minutes' walk north of the landings of the Bedell House and the Grand Island ferry boats, making it the most accessible spot near Buffalo for such a station. There is hourly ferry service during the whole year between the clubhouse and Buffalo. The house is a frame structure of Colonial design, three stories high, the length, including verandas, being 106 feet, with a depth of 42 feet. Spacious grounds surround the house and are made beautiful by terraces, shrubbery, flowerbeds, tennis courts and an attractive lawn. In front of the clubhouse, an L-shaped pier, extending 150 feet into the river and thence 150 feet down stream, forms a harbor for the launches of the members. On three sides of the building are wide verandas, which command a picturesque view of the Niagara River, with Buffalo in the distance.
The interior of the house is even more attractive than the exterior. From the lower veranda, wide doors lead into the reception hall, which is 18x30 feet, with a massive Colonial fireplace and winding staircase. To the north side of the hall is a spacious dining room, 30x35 feet, furnished with beautiful Mission furniture. On the south side is a parlor, 12 x 18 feet, and also a ladies' parlor and retiring room of the same size. Extending between these is a hallway leading to a well equipped pool and billiard room, 20 x 30 feet. The hall and dining room are so arranged that they can be opened to form one large room, when desired, for dancing or large receptions. On the second floor, besides the board of directors' room, there are thirteen comfortable sleeping apartments, one hundred convenient lockers, a linen room, and a bathroom equipped with a large shower and other convenience. The third floor, or what is known by the club as "Dream Hall," is a large airy room with picturesque views from all of its four sides. Here are sleeping accommodations for at least one hundred persons, and it is a favorite rendezvous for the tired yachtsmen on sultry summer days. The cost of the land and buildings was $15,000.
The Buffalo Launch Club has a constitution and bylaws which have worked out very successfully in the management of this association, and they have been used as a model by many similar organizations throughout the United States. The club was incorporated December 31, 1903, and since its incorporation it has been run on a sound financial and businesslike basis. The officers of the club for the current year are Commodore Louis A. Fischer, Vice Commodore Frederick Fenster, Secretary Harry H. Simpson, Treasurer Frank X. Argus, Fleet Captain G. B. Eggert, and Fleet Surgeon Dr. E. H. Tweedy. The board of directors is composed of Dr. A. E. Hubbard, J. W. Ashley, Albert Dohn and F. R. Metcalf.
The membership of the club long ago passed the original limit, and now there are two hundred and sixty members. A large portion of the members are owners of motorboats, and an important regulation of the club is that only motorboats can fly the club colors. Among the non-resident members who fly the Buffalo Launch Club colors are C. L. Newman and H.W. Dunn, Halifax, N. S., and W. A. Cloud, London, England.
Each year there are many lively races held under the auspices of the club and these are always largely attended. One feature to which the large attendance and general enthusiasm is attributable is the fact that when races are scheduled by the club, they are held at the time and place appointed, without regard to unfavorable weather conditions or similar objections. When a race is advertised, it is held, and there are no delays or disappointment. In the race for the Letchworth trophy last year, between the Buffalo Motor Boat Club and the Launch Club, the latter succeeded in carrying away the laurels. One of the fixed events of the season to which the club looks forward with great pleasure is the yearly race from Port Maitland, Ontario to Buffalo. This event is especially for cruising launches and is invariably held on Labor Day. Some of the fast boats owned by members of the club are the Niagara, which has done better than 25 miles an hours; Arab, 23 miles; Dolphin, 21 miles, King Bee, 21 miles, Wizard II, 20 miles, Whiz, 18 miles. Already two members of the club have signified their intention of having boats built which will make better than 28 and perhaps 30 miles an hour, and the outlook for the coming season is very promising. It is safe to predict that there will be not only some famous racing events, which will eclipse all former club meets, but also more good fellowship and general entertainment than ever before in the history of the club.
Joseph A. McGuire
Angelo LaDuca Featured In Art Show
Left: Angelo LaDuca displays the steps in creating his art, right: Lake Como paintings.
From left: first drawing, first pastel and first oil painting. Click photo for larger view
Island resident Angelo F. LaDuca was recently the featured artist in a one-man show at the Partners In Art Gallery located in downtown North Tonawanda. What makes that so interesting is that he is fairly new to the art scene, having started just six short years ago and that this was his second major show in the past year. Angelo was one of four alumni artist invited to take part in a Colgate University Class of 1959 50th Reunion, a month long exhibit in May of 2009. He was interested in art in his youth, but without any encouragement from a college art professor, went on to become a lawyer and real estate appraiser/realtor for over 40 years. At Angelo's retirement four years ago, and with encouragement from his wife Barbara he began taking weekly classes, many in the Partners In Art Complex located on Webster Street. Partners in Art was founded in 1995 by artists Joan Horn and Glenna Sternin to benefit the artists and art communities of Western New York.
Angelo has stated that anyone can do as well or even better than he as an artist, if that person applies himself. He is the consummate student of art, with a large reference library and many hours spent taking classes in drawing, color, perspective, composition and painting technique. His recent show featured 76 drawings, pastels and oil paintings. He has traveled the world and painted landscapes from photos of his travels. Featured in the recent art show were wonderful paintings from Lake Como - Italy, Japan and China, and the northwest United States and Canada. To become an artist, Angelo believes: 1. drawing skills are foundation, 2. principles are the structure and 3. attitude makes it happen. Check out a list of principles of art checklist that he has compiled. Angelo will again be featured at the Partners In Art Gallery this month. The public is welcome to attend the 13th annual student show that will run from February 6th through February 26th, Tuesday - Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., 74 Webster Street, North Tonawanda.
