The Historic Business District

The Historic Business District. . , Early morning July 30, 1890 , Alarms howl, waking the whole village. Flames roar down Fall Street, fanned by a stiff breeze. A choking black smoke billows across the canal. Jets of water hiss from hoses bristling from a dozen horse, drawn, steam-powered fire engines, as fire-fighters desperately battle the fierce blaze. But when the wind suddenly whips the flames across Fall Street, they drop their hoses and run for their lives., After many exhausting hours, the fire is finally under control, but not before it has devoured eighty-seven businesses and left much of Fall and State Streets in ruins. Seneca Falls will have to rebuild its downtown business district yet again, just as it did after devastating fires in 1859 and 1873., Despite vast losses, Seneca Falls’ merchants quickly reinvested in the village’s future, erecting elegant new brick buildings and reopening the shops, offices, hotels and taverns wiped out by the awful ”conflagration." Today, these 1890s buildings are home to many Seneca Falls businesses, as are the blocks constructed on lower Fall Street in the 1860s after the terrible 1859 fire., In the 1970s, a new concern about the future of Fall Street led downtown business people and local government to join in yet another rebuilding of the central business district. These citizens worked to preserve and revitalize the village's rich historical and architectural heritage, leading to Seneca Falls’ recognition as a New York State Heritage Area (originally designated an "Urban Cultural Park") and to the creation of the Woman’s Rights National Historical Park. A local historic district now protects much of the village, and the central business district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.