Prior the construction of Buffalo’s expressway system, the relationship between the waterfront and neighborhoods was much more intimate. In this 1896 photograph, we see the foot of Breckenridge Street at the Niagara River. Small boat houses line the water, with ramps to a series of row boats. The Queen City Mills, north of the Ferry Street Bridge, is visible on the right. These buildings were destroyed by fire on June 18, 1901, in a spectacle that was a greater attraction that day than the Pan American Exposition.

Image courtesy of The Buffalo History Museum. Used by permission.