Speaker Profile: Charles LaChiusa, recipient of the 2010 Buffalo & Erie County Historical Society's Owen B. Augspurger award for the preservation of Erie County's heritage & a Trustee for Preservation Buffalo Niagara since 2008. From 2002-2009, Mr. LaChiusa taught "History of Buffalo through Architecture" courses for the Buffalo, Kenmore and Southowns Teacher Centers, including a 15-hour walking tour for teachers. 1998 was the start of his creation "Buffalo Architecture & History" web site, which documents several hundred historic Buffalo buildings, including building history, architectural analysis, essays & archival photos. From 1976 to 2002, Chuck taught at City Honors in the Buffalo Public School system, where he indulged his students with enthusiasm for transforming language, history & architecture into virtual publications.
Chuck's Public Talks and Tours.
Please note that listed under Chuck's Public Talks and Tours Chuck's Public Talks and Tours are Cusack Center Tours which are approved for Continuing Professional Education (see below). These tours are listed among other talks and tours that are not approved for real estate professional CE Credits but may be of interest to the general public.
PREREQUISITES
None, however take into consideration that some Buffalo Walks may involve walking 3 or more miles at a modest pace and may require some stairs or moderate uphill climbing. All Walks proceed, rain or shine.
2018 Cusack Center Tours, Fridays 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM.
All Buffalo Walks begin at Cusack Center unless otherwise specified.
5/18/18: Skylights & Ceilings
This tour will include Beaux Arts, Early Modern, Postmodern, Colonial Revival, Art Deco, Art Moderne and Art Nouveau styles. The route will include City Hall, Dun Building, St. Joseph's Cathedra, the Guaranty Building, St. Paul's Cathedral, Fidelity Bank, M & T Center, Ellicott Square Building, Rand Building, Old Post Office, Lafayette Hotel,Electric Tower, Liberty Building, Hyatt Hotel, Market Arcade and Buffalo Savings Bank.
6/08/18: Village of Williamsville
New this season! This village walk about includes the styles of Pennsylvania Ethnic stone houses, Romanesque Revival, Coloniall Revival and Georgian Revival. Walk begins at Cusack Center with Talk: Historic Williamsville. The route will include Island Park, Ellicott Creek, the Water Mill and landmarks of Main, Mill and East Spring Streets.
6/22/18: Houses of Bidwell Parkway
This tour will include the parkway itself as a prime example of the Olmstead Park concept, a broad roadway with decorative streetlights and grassy median. It serves as a backdrop for the homes constructed circa late 1800 to early 1900's and examines the architectural features of Colonial and Tudor Revival, Queen Ann, Craftsman and Prairie styles of the era. It includes a brief visit inside Buffalo Seminary.
7/13/18: Historic RiverWalk/Canalside
Through the efforts of both municipal and private development with funding from public and private sectors revitalizing the water's edge, this tour will examine Postmodern & Federal styles, Lift Bridge, Whipple Truss Bridge, Grain elevator and Mill. We will explore some of the oldest neighborhoos of Buffalo, many having gone through numerous transitions and continue to evolve. The redevelopment of Canalside and new waterfront attractions are featured, along with the history of the opening of the Erie Canal and development of the grain elevator and other waterfront industry.
8/03/18: Parkside History & Architecture Tour
Planned by the renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead, the Parkside neighborhood of Buffalo quickly attracted wealthy and professional classes of a thriving metropolis. Many residents had homes produced by eminent architects, including Frank Lloyd Wright who designed five buildings on the world famous Martin House complex. This lecture and walk will include an expoloraton of the importance of the Belt Line Railroad and a tour of the TriMain Daylight Factory style to examine a modern-day textbook adaptive reuse project.
8/24/18: The Hidden Architectural Features of Downtown through Binoculars
This tour will examine the hidden details of Beaux Arts, Renaissance Revival, Art Deco, Colonial Revival, Victorian Romanesque, Early Modern, Gothic Revival, Italianate and Victorian Gothic styles. Native materials featured will include Terra Cotta, Indiana limestone, Cast iron, and Granite. Structural and ornamental architectural details will be featured. You won't know what you've been missing until you look upwards on our Binocular Tour!
9/07/18: Niagara Street Industrial Heritage Tour
One of Joseph Ellicott's original radial streets, Niagara runs parallel to the Niagara River, railroad tracks and the former Erie Canal route (now the I-190 expressway) and it connected the early villages of Buffalo and Black Rock. As one of Buffalo's major industrial corridors, factories produced everything from automobiles to skincare products. Today, many original factories and warehouses are being converted to apartments and lofts offering seasonal Niagara River views. Learn about Niagara's industrial past and witness the dramatic transformation of many of its historic buildings. Styles include Daylight Factory, Early 20th Century commercial, Federal, Postmodern, Bascule bridge and Art Deco. Of all the original businesses shaping Buffalo's industrial heritage, come find out which is the only vibrant operation remaining today!
9/21/18: Allentown Historic District
We began offering the Allentown Historic District Tour in 2012 and revisited it again in 2013, 2014 & 2015. So we don't blame you if you think you've seen it, done that. But think again! Join us as we take a refreshed view of Allentown transformed and explore the new and vibrant projects in progress or coming soon! From its origins as Louis Allen's undeveloped cattle grazing pastures of the 1820's to a look at its current state of evolution, perhaps you've missed a thing or two! Yes, we will always cover the bounty of Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne, Romanesque Revival, Arts & Crafts and Eastlake styles and ornamentation. But we will look through the unique 21st century lens of ongoing efforts to preserve the old and revered in a creatively reimagined use for our times. Come walk the urban pastureland with us!
10/05/18: A Retro Look - the 1901 Pan American Exposition Site
The Pan-American Exposition was a home-grown industry display held in Buffalo NY from May through November of 1901. It drew planning and architectural talents from the Chicago World's Fair which preceeded it. The trending "World's Fairs" at the turn of the century represented local businesses, innovation and budding economic engines of the times. The Buffalo fair occupied 350 acres of land on the western edge of what is now Deleaware Park, extending from Delaware to Elmwood Avenues and northward to Great Arrow Avenue. It is remembered today primarily for its innovative electric light displays and the site of the assassination of President William McKinley as he attended the fair. In addition to studying the history of the Pan-Am, we will explore the architecture of its popular neighborhoods, and visit one of the few remaining buildings from the 1901 exposition. If you know what it is, no spoilers please!
