Living in Greece Stories

Stories and recollections from the people, places, and publications that document life in the Town of Greece.

These articles offer perspectives on what it was like to live in the Town of Greece in the past. Many are from the archives or newsletters of the Greece Historical Society. If you would be interested in learning more about the Town of Greece’s history, please feel free to contact us at (585) 225-7221.

(These stories are the property of the Greece Historical Society, which retains all right thereto. The contributors to these stories provide them for non-commercial, personal, educational, and/or research use only. Prior written permission from the Greece Historical Society and the individual authors must be obtained for any other use, including but not limited to commercial or scholarly publications, or any reproductions or redistribution of any kind.)

Share Your Stories and Memories

We love to read stories and memories by you or your organization. Submit a local history story or memory of growing up in the Town of Greece by emailing a zip file with your story and photos to greecehistoricalsociety@yahoo.com. Use the subject line: Share My Story of Local History or Memories Of Greece N.Y. plus your story title. Include a brief bio and one photo for publication.

Your story should be no more than 500 words. We can edit for continuity, grammar, and punctuation. Stories may cover one span or multiple spans: 1800-1850, 1900-1950, 1950-2000, and 2000-Present.

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Notice in the Daily Democrat, June 14, 1854

Ralph Francis: Black Activist and Abolitionist

February 2, 2024 |
Marie Poinan presented on Charlotte ferries' history, highlighting Ralph Francis, a black ferry operator who might have aided the Underground Railroad (UGRR). With limited records due to UGRR secrecy, Francis's activism and circumstantial evidence, including his property and business ties, support possible involvement. After facing personal tragedies and potential danger,...
Categories: 1800-1850 1850-1900 Charlotte Hamlets of Greece Living in Greece Stories
Tags: Benjamin Cleggett Canada Charlotte Civil War conductor Daily Democrat Democrat & Chronicle Eagle Hotel Francis & Cleggett Barber Shop Frederick Douglass Fugitive Slave Act Genesee River Greig Street Harriet Tubman Kelsey's Landing Marie Villone Poinan Maureen Whalen New York State North Star Ontario Peterborough Port of Charlotte Ralph Francis Reynolds Arcade Stagecoach stationmaster Third Ward Underground Railroad
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The Rochester Park Band at Manitou Beach in 1906

July 1, 2020 |
1900s Manitou Beach Postcard Want to have some fun? Let's go on a company picnic to Manitou Beach in the summer of 1906. We'll join the nearly 1,000 employees of James Cunningham & Sons, a huge company with several factories, which, in 1906, was still making horse-drawn carriages, but by...
Categories: 1900-1950 Charlotte Guest Stories Living in Greece Stories
Tags: 1890s 1906 1920 1920s 1924 19th Century 20th Century 54th Regiment Band amusement park at Manitou Beach Automobile Club Baseball Braddock Bay Canal Street Chralotte Elmheart Hotel Fred Zeitler James Cunningham & Sons. Manitou Beach Manitou Beach Hotel Manitou Beach Trolley Manitou Hotel Manitou Trolley New York Central train station Odenbach Hotel Orphans Day Rochester Park Band Theodore Dossenbach William Bausch
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Music in the air for over 130 Summers at Ontario Beach Park

August 1, 2016 |
This 2016 summer season of Wegman's Concerts by the Shore has concertgoers hearing such varied groups as The Dady Brothers Grand Band, The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, The Greece Jazz Band, and the Skycoasters, with more to come. Looking back through newspaper files, postcards, and photos of the last century and...
Categories: 1900-1950 Charlotte From The Historian's Files Living in Greece Stories
Tags: 1870s 1900s 1910 1919 1920s 1924 1925 54th Regiment Bands Bartholomay Cottage Hotel and Pavil­ion Columbia Records Dossenbachs Edison Company Edison Records Edna White Gilmore Band Herman Japan Day John Cummings Lapham's "Red Husser" Band Link Ontario Beach Patrick Gilmore Rochester Park Band Skycoasters Spencer House The Dady Brothers Grand Band The Greece Jazz Band The Lapham The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra Theodore Theodore and Herman Thomas Edison
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“Let’s Go For An Sunday Excursion” – and never leave the county

July 1, 2012 |
That is just what families and couples might do in the summer of 1912. Sunday was the ideal time for an outing as the aver­ age work week was 5 and one-half days. The Rochester area was lucky to have Lake Ontario and Irondequoit Bay close at hand where they...
Categories: 1900-1950 Charlotte Living in Greece Stories
Tags: "The Breezer'' "The Hawaiian Gardens" "The Pink Ticket Trip" 1900 1912 1924 Birds Charlotte Clinton Street coats East Main Street Glen Haven Park Hojack Line Irondequoit Bay J.D. Scott Japanese Garden Lake & Bay Belt All Resort Ticket Lake Avenue Trolley Lake Ontario Lake Ontario Shoreline Railroad large ladies hats Main and State Main St Mr. J.D. Scott Naphtha or Gasoline Launch Newport House Ontario Beach Park peanuts Philadelphia Pt. Pleasant Rochester Trolley Sea Breeze Sea Breeze Pier Sodus Bay St. Paul Street State Street ties Turkey-Trot! umbrellas West Main Trolley Worms Wurlitzer Orchestra Piano
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