This Day In New York History

There are a lot places to find information on New York history. Plenty of organizations do a great job telling in depth stories about specific battles, famous people, and even small town tales. All of that history comes with important dates in our past.

This page is an evolving attempt to try and capture the important dates in the Empire State’s past. The database includes historic events, births, and deaths that took place on this day in history. Each one in some way directly relates to Upstate.

This database is a work in progress and is updated regularly with historic dates. Some will be wide reaching and recognizable across Upstate. Others will be noteworthy only to those who live right in the region.

Regardless of the relation, all of the dates and events included in this database have had an impact in some way to the history of Upstate New York.

Today’s Events

1687 Marquis de Denonville, Governor of New France, and a force of nearly 3,000, construct a temporary stockade in the area that is today known as Seabreeze just north of the city of Rochester in Monroe County.

1854 George Eastman, founder of Eastman Kodak Co., is born in Waterville, New York in Oneida County.

1888 Hiram Sibley, pioneer of the telegraph and founder of Western Union, dies in Rochester (Monroe County).

1895 The Scribner & Smith’s Enormous United Shows, described as 3 bands of music, 100 thoroughbred horses and 60 elegant acts, performs at the Vandenburgh Lot in Schuylerville.

1906 Home of the professional New York State League’s JAGs, Parkhurst Field in Gloversville, New York, Fulton County opens to the public.

1969 The flow of water over Niagara Falls is stopped to allow engineers an opportunity to examine the riverbed's structural integrity.

Looking for more? You’ll find a whole bunch of Upstate history in the facts section.

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Whether it’s the closing an iconic restaurant, the birth of a well known Upstater, or a news event that made waves, it’s an important piece of our past. It may seem inconsequential, but preserving the past is an integral part of our local storytelling.

If you have a piece of history related to New York that you feel should be included, please submit using this contact form.