By Steve Cichon
steve@buffalostories.com
@stevebuffalo
For this 21st century Buffalonian, it’s tough to imagine the water playing such a vital daily role in the lives of Buffalonians of 100 years ago, but the dock along the Buffalo River is as busy as any downtown street.
For generations, we’ve lamented the loss of the water as a part of our lives in Buffalo. While projects of the last 15 years have allowed much more waterfront access than we’ve seen in decades, today, the foot of Main Street in this photo is covered by Metro Rail tracks and parking lots between the back of KeyBank Center and the Skyway.
The steel propeller passenger ship Wyandotte spent the summer of 1904 as the passenger ferry between downtown Buffalo and Crystal Beach. It was one of a handful of steamers to handle those duties before the SS Canadiana took over the route from 1910 through 1956.
About a decade after the above photo was taken, the buildings visible on the left would make way for the DL&W Terminal, parts of which are still used today as an NFTA storage shed for Metro Rail trains.
