Niagara Falls in Niagara County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

The Buttery Elevators

The Passing of a 19th-Century Landmark

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, September 5, 2026

1. The Buttery Elevators Marker (current)

60 paces north of the location of the prior (original) marker.

Inscription. The public accessed the Whirlpool Rapids via a rickety stairway at an old saw mill that was purchased by John M. Buttery in the 1850s. When the site became a popular tourist destination, Buttery abandoned the mill and built a safer stairway into the gorge. In 1869 to further improve access to the Whirlpool Rapids, he built the Buttery Elevators on land purchased from DeVeaux College for Orphans and Destitute Children. The Buttery family operated the elevators, which were powered by a water wheel, for over 20 years.

In 1889, the family formed the Whirlpool Rapids Company, and in 1893, a new longer shaft with double elevator cars was built. The company also erected an electric plant to light a park, the elevators, and the rapids. To attract even more visitors, the company petitioned for an extension of the Niagara Falls Street Railway to its property. Eventually, the property was sold to the Gorge Railroad. In 1899, a windstorm blew down the original elevator building, and a rockslide almost completely destroyed the machinery in the newer elevator building. In 1901, the city of Niagara Falls burned them in a controlled

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fire.

J. M. Buttery was born in the town of Homer, NY, arrived in Lewiston around 1830, and married Priscilla Nichols in 1835. He took an active part in the 1837 Canadian Rebellion and supervised the excavation of the "Through Cut" of the Lewiston & Niagara Falls Railroad.

Whirlpool Rapids and Double Elevator on American Side. Most charming and Delightful Spot about Niagara. Grand View of the old Suspension Bridge. Hero Blondin crossed the gorge on a rope, and past here Robinson, in 1861, piloted the steamer "maid of the Mist" through the boiling rapids. Grandest View of Rapids and Gorge. the fearful current forces the water in the centre of the stream forty feet higher than at the edges. Don't fail to visit the spot. M. Buttery Sons. The Daily Gazette, September 9, 1883.

You are standing near the site of the Buttery Elevators. Chasm Avenue, which now stops at Whirlpool Street, at one time ran to the edge of the gorge. This map shows the Niagara Falls Street Railway terminating at the Buttery Elevators.

The Buttery Whirlpool Rapids Company successfully petitioned for the extension of the railway, which included construction

The Buttery Elevators Marker (original - removed) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, July 7, 2014

2. The Buttery Elevators Marker (original - removed)

of a tunnel and the extension of Spring Avenue from Bellvue Avenue to Chasm Avenue. Courtesy of the Niagara Falls Public Library.

Born in Roxbury, Vermont, in 1813, Priscilla and her family moved to Western New York in 1816, eventually settling on a farm in Lewiston in 1820. She was a school teacher, mother of ten, and following her husband's death, managed the Buttery Elevators for 16 years.

Erected by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Entertainment • Environment • Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars. A significant historical year for this entry is 1869.

Location. 43° 6.822′ N, 79° 3.492′ W. Marker is in Niagara Falls, New York, in Niagara County. It is on Whirlpool Street 0.1 miles west of Chasm Avenue, on the right when traveling south. The marker is along rim trail between the Whirlpool Bridge and Whirlpool State Park, approximately across from the intersection of Whirlpool Street and Chasm Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Niagara Falls NY 14303, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally,

The Buttery Elevators Marker - Northward View image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, September 5, 2026

3. The Buttery Elevators Marker - Northward View

this marker is in Upstate New York,

specifically in Western New York,

and in the Buffalo Metropolitan Area.

It is also in the American Northeast

and in the Mid-Atlantic.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Great Lakes,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

New Netherland,

and one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The Inukshuk (approx. 0.2 miles away in Canada); Pastimes and Parkways (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); Escape Prevented (approx. half a kilometer away); United States Custom House (approx. half a kilometer away); First Niagara Suspension Bridge (approx. half a kilometer away); A Bridge to Freedom (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Great Gorge Railway Trail (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); To The River (approx. 0.6 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Niagara Falls.

Also see . . . The Buttery Elevator - Niagara Frontier.com. (Submitted on July 9, 2014, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York.)

The Buttery Elevators Marker - Southward View image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, September 5, 2026

4. The Buttery Elevators Marker - Southward View

Transitional Northward View image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, November 20, 2020

5. Transitional Northward View

The Robert Moses Parkway has been removed. The gorge rim trail is left; Whirlpool Street is at right. The grassy area was allowed to grow into a wild field. Mowed paths allow for transiting the field indirectly.

Old Northward View: The Buttery Elevators Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, July 7, 2014

6. Old Northward View: The Buttery Elevators Marker

The marker is a white speck left of the green "Findlay Dr, Whirlpool St, Bridge to Canada, NEXUS Only, Keep Right" sign and across both roadways of the Robert Moses Parkway. The parkway has been removed.

Old Westward View The Buttery Elevators Marker (original - removed) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, July 7, 2014

7. Old Westward View The Buttery Elevators Marker (original - removed)

By the southbound lanes of the Robert Moses Parkway. The parkway has been removed. When this image was taken, the southbound lanes had been permanently closed to motorized traffic. The parkway was renamed Niagara Scenic Parkway.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, July 7, 2014

8. The Buttery Elevators Marker (original - removed)

Missing: The Buttery Elevators Marker (original) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anton Schwarzmueller, November 20, 2020

9. Missing: The Buttery Elevators Marker (original)

The empty post is still in place 60 paces south of the current marker.

Credits. This page was last revised on September 6, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 9, 2014, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. This page has been viewed 1,642 times since then and 75 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on September 6, 2026, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. 2. submitted on July 9, 2014, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. 3, 4. submitted on September 6, 2026, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. 5. submitted on November 20, 2020, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. 6, 7, 8. submitted on July 9, 2014, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. 9. submitted on November 20, 2020, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.