Erie Canalway Trail
In 1884, the Tonawanda Gas Light Company was incorporated to supply gas to both Tonawanda and North Tonawanda for street and house lighting. The "gas works" was located on property once owned by Mary Long. Between the Canandaigua and Erie railroads, it consisted of a brick building on East South Canal Street and of a huge tank 60 feet in diameter. The tank consisted of two cylinders, one of which was inside the other. One cylinder was stationary and the other movable, rising and falling in accordance with the amount of gas inside. When the gas works tank was up, it was noticeable from a great distance and became, therefore, a well-known landmark. As years passed, the entire area eastward from the confluence of Ellicott Creek and the Erie Canal became commonly known as "Gastown". And today, the name persists. In the photo at left, the framework of the tank indicates how high the movable cylinder could climb. From where you are standing, you can see the building in the photo as it exists today. Canalboat nearing completion in yard of Ira M. Rose on Ellicott Creek, circa 1890. One of many boatyards in the Gastown area. On a Oile of Wood Shavings - Shingle Mill Employees, 1880s. The Lumber Mills of Tonawanda. The Tonawandas resounded with the screeching, humming sounds of its many mills. Sawdust was tracked everywhere; the very smell of it was in the air. Sdaly, it was not unusual to see local men missing fingers or hands as a result of accidents on the job, accidents that could prove fatal as well. Lumber Fire at the Eastern Lumber Company in Gastown.| HM Number | HM1NDO |
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| Series | This marker is part of the Erie Canal series |
| Tags | |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Saturday, August 29th, 2015 at 9:02pm PDT -07:00 |
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 17T E 673378 N 4765466 |
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| Decimal Degrees | 43.02210000, -78.87215000 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 43° 1.326', W 78° 52.329' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 43° 1' 19.56" N, 78° 52' 19.74" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 716 |
| Which side of the road? | Marker is on the right when traveling West |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near 93-109 E Niagara St, Tonawanda NY 14150, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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