Museums and History (37)

Located on the Chautauqua County Fairgrounds in Dunkirk. Railroad displays, locomotive and museum. Open Jun/Jul/Aug by appointment and during fairground events.

A 600-acre wildlife sanctuary with 5 miles of easy hiking trails through fields, woods, and wetlands with observations towers and handicap accessible overlook. Exhibits, bird collection, and  Nature Store.

Bemus Point & Chautauqua Lake memorabilia, photos, genealogy information for the Town of Ellery, Bemus Point & Chautauqua Lake.  Open All year by appointment.

Historic water turbine Grist Mill built in 1839, open for tours by appointment only and home of the Busti Apple Festival held annually the last Sunday of September.

The Chautauqua County Historical Society was founded in 1883, making it one of the oldest societies in Western New York State and is housed in the McClurg Museum.

Sports memorabilia from baseball, basketball, golf, bowling, auto-racing and much more! Museum Hours are generally 12:00 - 3:00pm.  Arrangements can be made for a group to tour the museum anytime it would like by contacting Grace Dolan at 716-484-1224 or Bill Rollinger at 716-763-8229.

Located in historic village of Fredonia, this 1820 Brick Victorian museum has both permanent and temporary exhibits on display, including a restored "Victorian Parlor" with a working pump organ and the Children's Museum.

Complete aviation museum with a large display of aircraft, engines, models and memorabilia. Museum open May 1 to Nov. 1; Tue - Sun 10 AM-5 PM. Also, glider rides, airplane rides, flight instruction. Flea market Sat/Sun.

Museum at Lakeside Park in Mayville that highlights the Ice Harvesting Industry of Chautauqua Lake, steam boating & furniture making, and features the first voting machine. Open Memorial Day to Labor Day, Fri, Sat & Sun from 1 -5 PM.

Historical site with a working lighthouse. The 61-ft tower still has its original third order Fresnel lens. The light's 27-mile range makes Dunkirk one of the most prominent on Lake Erie with an exentensive collection of military & maritime artifacts.

The Dunkirk Historical Museum is an institution dedicated to the promotion of the city's historical, cultural and artistic heritage. Genealogy library. Open all year, Mon-Fri, from 1PM to 4 PM, or by appointment.

1863 Italianate villa, former mansion of NYS Governor Ruben Fenton; period rooms, local history exhibits, reference & genealogy library, and education programs.

The Nature Center features a 10-acre marsh with a variety of wetland plants and animals. An active beaver colony has created at least one lodge and two active dams on the site, one of which stretches across the mouth of the wetland.  

Located in the Old Elementary School - Now the Town Hall on North Road (CR3).

Open Saturdays 9am-12pm

Known as the “Jewel on the Lake” the Graycliff Estate is a complex of three buildings and 8.4 acres of grounds and gardens, all designed by renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

The Cordwood Building of the French Creek Historical Society

Town of Hanover history, files, records, artifacts and library.  Open year round by appointment.

Historical museums featuring an 1840's rural home with carriage barn and an 1890 school house, and weaving building. Open all year by appointment.

Built in the 1880's by Hermann Haverkamp, a Dutch immigrant who came to Clymer in 1847.

Preserving Boating Heritage on Chautauqua Lake with historic and educational boating exhibits, photographs, displays and classes.

Open during the summer season (late June to early September) 11:00am-4pm daily. An 1890 one-room school house is now home to the Lily Dale Museum. The museum is located at the corner of Library Street and East Street across from the Healing Temple.

A statue, erected in 1999 in Westfield, NY in what is now known as the Lincoln-Bedell Statue Park. This interesting park showcases unique, bronze statues of Abraham Lincoln and Grace Bedell, the girl who suggested that he grow a beard for his presidential campaign.

Devoted to the "I Love Lucy" TV series. Complete re-creations of Lucy & Ricky Ricardo's NY City apartment & the Hollywood hotel suite, plus a screening area, and showcases filled with vintage memorabilia as well as costumes that were worn on the show.

A 14-room Federal-style mansion, nestled within the Westfield village green, surrounded by majestic shade trees & manicured lawns, is a unique learning experience for children and adults alike. Offering a rare glimpse of life in Chautauqua County.

Photos, antiques and memorabilia of the history of Chautauqua Lake and the 16th oldest continually operating amusement park in the nation.

The Chautauqua Institution Archives is both an Institution repository and a collection repository.

Photos, antiques and memorabilia of the Town of Portland from the 1800's and 1900'ss, all in an actual railroad depot.   Guided and group tours available by appointment. 

Located in a restored 1859 mansion, the Jackson Center provides event-based education for youth, law-related education, lectures, symposiums, publications. Film & video room, archive center, WWII liberation poster exhibit; Nuremberg Trial photo exhibit.

Every year the Roger Tory Peterson Institute offers exciting events and spectacular natural history exhibitions that attract thousands of visitors. The Artwork of Robert Bateman, Backyard Monsters: The World of Insects, and Art and the Animal are just a few of the exhibits that have been featured at RTPI.

Experience the proud culture and history of the Seneca and other Iroquois Nations of New York & the Northeast. Located on the Allegany Reservation of the Seneca Nation: The Keepers of the Western Door.

Sheridan Historical Society - Sheridan artifacts & memorabilia including items from Grange.  Info available for researchers.  Open summer by appointment.

Located on the south shores of  Lake Erie in the Town of Hanover, Chautauqua County, New York.

The Smith Library is located on the grounds of Chautauqua Institution. Open all year with research history and genealogy.

Located in the Depot Museum, with exhibits focusing on the Town of Chautauqua and Chautauqua Lake, ice harvesting, furniture manufacturing and steamboating.

Exhibits a the museum reflect early settler life & industries, featuring butter, cheese, & maple syrup production. Quilts, clothing, spinning wheel, swift loom, farm machinery and tools on display.Also records from area churches, schools, stores & farms.  Open May 1-Sept 30 2PM-5PM

A Village within a Village: Six restored buildings, depicting Sherman life in the mid-1800's, including gazebo and meeting house furnished with antiques and memorabilia.