Aurora Town Historian

09/16/2026

EAST AURORA SHOWS RESPECT...125 years ago today (September 16, 1901), the funeral train of President William McKinley passed through East Aurora on its way to Washington, D.C., after the president's assassination at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo. Also on board were the newly sworn-in president, Theodore Roosevelt, Mrs. McKinley, and members of the president's cabinet.

A local committee hastily made arrangements to don the train station and other East Aurora buildings in black mourning bunting, and two large American flags were hung across Main Street on either side of the tracks.

This photograph shows the train just outside the Village of East Aurora.

(Article from the September 19, 1901 issue of the East Aurora Advertiser, in the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office. The Warner House referenced in the article was located where the Aurora Theatre is today.)

The Buffalo History Museum
Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site
Erie County Historical Commission

09/15/2026

09/14/2026

'MET DEATH WITHOUT TREMOR'...125 years ago today, September 14, 1901, President William McKinley died as the result of an assassin's attack eight days earlier while greeting crowds in the Temple of Music at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo. Preserved in the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office are original copies (and a digital reproduction) of the following week's East Aurora Advertiser, the front page of which was largely devoted to the news.

(From the September 19, 1901 issue of the East Aurora Advertiser, preserved in the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office).

The Buffalo History Museum
Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site
Erie County Historical Commission

09/11/2026

ELECTION POSTPONED...Primary elections were underway across New York State on Tuesday, September 11, 2001, when terrorists attacked the nation 25 years ago. As a result, voting was abruptly postponed, and candidates for Town of Aurora offices issued a joint statement announcing that they would suspend active campaigning. (Voting resumed on September 25).

(From the September 13, 2001 issue of the East Aurora Advertiser, preserved in the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office).

09/10/2026

LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS...With the solemn 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks tomorrow, we share from the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office this original copy of the September 20, 2001 East Aurora Advertiser. Five days after the September 11 attacks, as many as 2,500 people gathered in Hamlin Park for a community candle light vigil.

09/09/2026

CALIFORNIA BECOMES A STATE...On this date (September 9) in 1850, President Millard Fillmore's signature finalized the process that admitted California as the 31st state. As part of the Compromise of 1850, which also included the controversial Fugitive Slave Law, California was admitted as a free state.

A quarter century earlier, a young Fillmore began his law and political career on Main Street in East Aurora before moving to Buffalo in 1830. Elected vice president in 1848, he ascended to the White House in the summer of 1850 upon the death of President Zachary Taylor. His honeymoon cottage, relocated to Shearer Avenue, is now a museum operated by the Aurora Historical Society New York.

(Image depicting a celebration in October 1850 of California's statehood; Library of Congress).

09/07/2026

LABOR DAY IN EMERY PARK...A year after it opened, Emery Park was expected to be a popular spot on Labor Day 100 years ago. This image from our archives shows the park playground about a year later.

(Article from the September 2, 1926 issue of the East Aurora Advertiser, preserved in the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office).

Erie County Parks, Recreation & Forestry
Erie County Historical Commission

09/04/2026

AUTO LAUNDRY...Today, we would call it a car wash. But 100 years ago this month, A.O. Zink & Sons announced the opening of its new "auto laundry" at 586 Main Street. Albert O. Zink also operated a car dealership and lumber company in East Aurora.

Pictured here is a modern Google Street View of the property that served as headquarters for Mr. Zink's company. (The Z monograms can still be seen on the front facade of the building!)

(Advertisement from the August 12, 1926 issue of the East Aurora Advertiser, preserved in the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office).

09/03/2026

YOU COULD OWN PART OF THE ROYCROFT...A subscriber coupon to purchase shares in "The Roycrofters" is among the many documents, photographs, magazines and other original materials from the Roycroft preserved in the archives of the Aurora Town Historian's Office.

For more information about the the Historian's Office archives and the resources available, visit www.townofaurorany.gov/departments/historian.

Roycroft Campus