I have always had an affinity for the mansions on east avenue, which is why I jumped at the opportunity to tour, video tape and photograph the house at 935 East Ave. While it has been used as offices since the 1950’s, they maintained much of the original character of the house. Many of the mansions on East Avenue have been converted into apartments, condos or offices. While the outsides have mostly maintained their original appearances, the insides have been divided, and even in one building I have been in, they have covered or painted woodwork and used office ceiling tiles. Some have even had “additions” attached. There are still a few that remain single-family residences though.
Gilbert Hunt was a trolley and bus operator for Rochester Transit Corporation (the predecessor organization of RTS) from 1907 to 1948. When Gilbert retired in 1948 the Democrat & Chronicle published a story about him and his impressive collection of Rochester transit passes which he amassed over his long career. That collection is now up for grabs…
While poking around the Rochester Image Database that the Monroe Public Library so lovingly maintains, I bumped into a series of 24 aerial photographs taken in 1982. That in and of itself wouldn’t be the most interesting thing ever, except the images portray Rochester in the middle of an incredible transition to be much closer to the city we know now than the one anyone might have recognized from before.
When Andrea Chervenak received a letter earlier this year from the Town of Irondequoit notifying her that a sidewalk was being proposed for her street, she was thrilled. Unfortunately for Andrea, her neighbors’ front lawns are more important than her children’s safety. To hammer this nonsensical point home, some people even made lawn signs…
RG&E’s Beebee power plant was one of the most formidable structures in Rochester. For half a century, this cluster of buildings covered an 8 acre site along the floor of the High Falls gorge – climbing up the west rock wall and looming hundreds of feet in the air over Platt Street and the neighborhood below…
Since I’ve lived downtown I’ve had my eyes on this building. Not for much good reason except that it was there, and waiting. But despite being so close, it always stayed locked up and out of reach. In fact, over the years it seemed to defy everyone’s best efforts to occupy it – including those of its many owners…
There’s no real reason for this post. I was going through old family photos this weekend and stumbled upon these ones from a boat tour around Manhattan island my wife and I took in 2004. By complete coincidence we sailed directly in front of the infamous Spirit of Ontario I (a.k.a. Fast Ferry) on her maiden voyage to Rochester…
Letchworth Bridge in southern Letchworth State Park celebrates its 141st birthday this year (built 1875) and will be replaced by a new steel arch bridge about 75 feet to the south. The new bridge will take approximately 3 years to complete. During that time efforts will be made to turn the original bridge into a pedestrian walkway similar to the hugely successful Poughkeepsie NY bridge crossing the Hudson River and gorge—now a New York State Park…
Last week Medley Centre finally went up for auction. Angelo Ingrassia, former owner of Irondequoit Dodge, won the vacant building plus nine adjoining properties for the bargain basement price of $100,000.
The following images were taken last month (December 2015) inside Medley Centre…
In late October I got the opportunity to go check out a place nearby that I had heard rumors about—a house that has been frozen in a state of construction since 2005. I don’t really feel comfortable sharing the exact location, but the property is in Fairport, NY, out near Egypt on a nice, quiet residential street – surrounded by woods and shrouded in mystery…
Gallina Development , with the help of the Rochester Model Railroad Club , has restored a favorite old model railroad display for the holiday season. The model trains, which have sat in storage for a decade, will be in the lobby of The Metropolitan (formerly Chase Tower) at One Chase Square in Downtown Rochester through the holidays…
While doing research for a recent story on the Rochester Marshmallow Company, we came across another interesting story right around the corner. This one had nothing to do with marshmallows. Wulff’s Hotel (shown above) at the corner of State and Factory Streets, was the scene of a notorious murder case…
Rochestersubway.com was first brought to my attention when I saw the University of Rochester’s Lost Swimming Pool article posted on social media. The photos were so beautiful and haunting that I was inspired to explore more on the site.
I was just starting to get into urban exploring and Rochestersubway.com showed me amazing locations in Rochester that I had never heard of. So I started to use the website as a reference for new places to explore…
Here is a neat view I came across while rummaging around in the Local History Department at the Rochester Public Library. The image is of State Street with downtown Rochester in the background, taken from one of the top floors of Kodak tower…
Welcome to the old Vacuum Oil plant on the west bank of the Genesee River in Rochester’s Plymouth-Exchange neighborhood. Abandoned for nearly a century, there has been very little desire to re-develop this 26-acre site due to contamination. Now, the City of Rochester is aiming to use New York State’s Brownfield Opportunity Areas program to clean it up and plan for its future redevelopment. But as of today, this property is still highly toxic. And you guessed it—we’re going inside…
Last week a Facebook message came in from RocSubway reader, Nate Sengillo. Nate wanted to share photos from his recent trip to Frontier Town. I’ve never been there myself, but I know I’ve heard of this place before as my family has spent more than a few summer vacations at nearby Lake George. But now seeing Nate’s photos, I wish I had…
For years I’ve wanted to camp overnight near the Seneca Army Depot and see if I could get some photos of the famed Seneca White Deer. Finally, I decided it was worth getting up before sunrise and just driving out there . The morning had perfect conditions. Hazy clouds extended the sunrise until at least 7:30 AM. Prime time activity for the deer population…
The following is a guest post submitted anonymously with additional photos by Mike Governale
I was near the airport when Vice President Biden’s plane came in a few weeks ago. Held up by a road block, I happened to find myself near a junk yard full of old RTS buses. I knew traffic wouldn’t be moving for a while so I pulled over and got out to take a closer look. It was little bus graveyard…
I’ve always been a fan of Rochester Subway content which looks at our city from a different angle. I thought I might contribute something in turn, that looks at our city from an aerial angle.
I noticed this week that Google Earth had updated its imagery to include snapshots from as early as a month ago. It is now possible to follow a lot of tangible changes that have been going on in the city for a while. I put together a handful of before-and-afters that I thought were interesting (to me anyway). Take a look at the album and see if you can spot the differences…
I received an email last week from George Conboy, Chairman of Brighton Securities. He asks, “Have you seen anywhere a photo of the transportation mural that was behind the long ticket counter at the old airport? I remember it as a vaguely Art Deco theme of general transportation with an emphasis, of course, on air transport.”
Mr. Conboy explained that he used to fly a lot during the “glory days” of air travel back in the 1960s when he was a kid. “I just liked that old mural. I used to see it all the time and it has always been in my mind.”
This is a great question. I had been told of this mural before but have never seen it myself. Photos of it online are practically non-existent, so this one will require some digging…
Get Email Updates...
Stay up-to-date on Rochester-related stories, artifacts, and ideas that you won't find in the mainstream news.
Totally free, never spammy, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
After the Erie Canal was rerouted south of downtown Rochester, the Rochester
Industrial & Rapid Transit Railway (the “subway”) was built in
its place as a link between the five different railroads and interurban trolley
lines that served the Rochester area. As the industrial landscape of Rochester
changed, and highways replaced the railroads, the Rochester subway gradually
became a relic of a bygone era. In 1956 the subway was abandoned and much of
its route was converted into Interstate 490 — built to connect Rochester
with the New York State Thruway (I-90). Read more about the history of the Rochester Subway.
RochesterSubway.com exists to help spark
public dialogue around how we can better connect the neighborhoods of Rochester
NY, surrounding communities, and their cultural offerings. Rochester’s
future is written in her past. Let's rediscover it.
![Gilbert Hunt was a trolley and bus operator with Rochester Transit Corporation for 40 years. His collection of transit passes is up for grabs. [IMAGE: From the collection of Gilbert Hunt]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/Gilbert-Hunt-1948-02-22_D&C.jpg)
![Downtown Rochester from the Cascade District [PHOTO: Rochester City Hall]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/topics/wp-content/uploads/Downtown_From_Cascade.jpg)
![Some neighbors who live along this road in Irondequoit would like sidewalks. Others would not. [IMAGE: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/no-sidewalk-sign-01.jpg)
![RG&E Beebee power station prior to demolition. Rochester, NY. Summer 2016. [IMAGE: Anonymous]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-rge-beebee-station-00.jpg)
![Old Richford hotel building at 65-67 S. Chestnut Street, Rochester. [IMAGE: Anonymous]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/richford-building-65-67-chestnut-rochester-00.jpg)
![Fast ferry on it's way to Rochester from New York Harbor, 2004. [IMAGE: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-fast-ferry-in-new-york-harbor-07.jpg)
![Portageville rail bridge at Letchworth State Park, NY. [IMAGE: Richard H. Jordan III]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/letchworth-portageville-bridge-07.jpg)
![Abandoned Medley Centre / Irondequoit Mall. Rochester, NY. [IMAGE: Random Retail, Flickr.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-medley-center-irondequoit-mall-01.jpg)
![In late October I got the opportunity to go check out a place nearby that I had heard rumors about—a house that has been frozen in a state of construction since 2005. [PHOTO: Anonymous]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-abandoned-glass-house-01.jpg)
![An old model train display has been dusted off and restored at the former Chase Tower in downtown Rochester. [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-chase-tower-metropolitan-tower-01.jpg)
![Wulff's Hotel, at the corner of State and Factory Streets in Rochester; the scene of a notorious murder on December 18, 1920. [IMAGE: From the Albert R. Stone Negative Collection, Rochester Museum & Science Center, Rochester, NY.]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/wulffs-hotel-and-rochester-marshmallow-company.jpg)
![Abandoned cars in the Four Mile Creek Preserve trails. Webster, NY. [IMAGE: Nate Sengillo]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-four-mile-creek-preserve-abandoned-cars-01.jpg)
![View of downtown Rochester from Kodak tower. [IMAGE: Rochester Public Library Local History Division]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-state-street-from-kodak-tower-00.jpg)
![Abandoned Vacuum Oil building. Flint Street, Rochester, NY. [IMAGE: Snoop Junkie]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/vacuum-oil-refinery-rochester-02.jpg)
![Frontier Town. [IMAGE: Nate Sengillo]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/frontier-town-abandoned-theme-park-01.jpg)
![White deer at Seneca Army Depot. Romulus, NY. [PHOTO: Matthew Ehlers]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/seneca-army-depot-00.jpg)
![RTS bus graveyard. [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-rts-transit-bus-graveyard-00.jpg)
![Satellite before & after image of Rochester. [IMAGE: Google Earth via Nick Russo]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-satellite-before-and-after-midtown-plaza.gif)
![Do you remember the mural at the old Rochester Monroe County Airport? A reader asked if we could share photos of it. [IMAGE: Rochester Public Library Local History Division]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-monroe-county-airport-00.jpg)
![\"RochesterSubway.com\"](\"https://rochestersubway.com/images/pixel_white.gif\"){kind=tracking}
