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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The City of Rochester in the Town of Greece: A legacy of the Erie Canal

February 9, 2025 |
The distinctive shape of Rochester, New York, is largely the result of various annexations over the years. Notably, in 1926, the city annexed a narrow strip of land, approximately 2 miles long and 130 feet wide, running parallel to Ridgeway Avenue in the Town of Greece. This land was part...
Categories: 1800-1850 1850-1900 1900-1950 1950-2000 2000 - Present Erie Canal Living in Greece Stories
Tags: 1825 1918 1922 1926 1938 1956 390 Camegi Companies Charlotte city Culver Road Durand Eastman Park Erie Canal Erie Canal Commons Genesee Valley Park Geographic Information System GIS Greece Irondequoit Bay Junction Lock Lake Erie Latona Road Lee Road Monroe County GIS North NY-390 old Olde Erie Trail Plat Map population density property boundaries rail Rochester State Route 390 subway town trail Tyron Park weather patterns
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Greece Little League – 70 Years Old!

March 4, 2024 |
Celebrating 70 years of Greece Little League program, starting in 1954 as Barnard Little League it evolved over 70 years to where it has expanded to cover all of the Town of Greece, parts of Charlotte and all of the Town of Hilton to the number of players and teams...
Categories: 1950-2000 2000 - Present Guest Stories
Tags: 3641 Latta Road Barnard Park Baseball Basil Marella Carter Park Challenger Charlotte D4 Championships Dorsey Field English Road Park Gary Biekirch Park George Badgerow Park GLL Greece Greece Little Leauge Greece Tornadoes Travel Hilton Innovative Field Rochester Red Wings Softball The Legion Post #486
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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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Rotobowling Never Quite Caught on in Greece

January 1, 2021 |
In the late 1940s, as bowling was becoming more popular, the residents of Greece had several choices of where to bowl, including Boem's on Edgemere Drive and the Charlotte bowling hall on Stutson Street. Along the Ridge, there was the Lyon's Den, Damm Brothers, and Ridge Bowling, but with no...
Categories: 1900-1950 1950-2000 Living in Greece Stories
Tags: 1940 1946 1954 1956 1957 1960 AMF Barnard School Boem's Charlotte Cramer's Drug Store Damm Brothers Dewey Ave Donato Fasano Edgemere Drive Ernest Fasano Fasinos Frear Estate Gambling Lyon's Den Maiden Lane Maiden Lanes McCall Michael Fasano New York State Northgate Plaza Orville Whittle Pin Boys Pin Spotter Ridge Bowling Ridge Bowling Hall Rotobowling Sam Mink Schantz Construction Stone Road Stutson St.
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“Climate Change in 1918?” – YUP Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter

February 2, 2018 |
Was anyone aware of climate change one hundred years ago? Was that term even used then? More than likely not... The local families (usually farmers) spoke of a harsh winter or damp spring. The Farmer's Almanac might predict what was ahead with some luck. Here are a group of photos...
Categories: 1900-1950 Living in Greece Stories
Tags: Albert Bowers Jr. Alfred Bowers Sr. Charlotte Christmas Dewey Ave. Farmer's Almanac Kodak Kodak Park Lake Avenue Mrs. Bowers Parma Ridge Road Stone Rd Thanksgiving World War I
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Greece memories: Farmer’s diary shows 1800’s life in the Island Cottage area

September 1, 2017 |
The William Connelly family lived for many years in the Island Cottage and Janes Road area. Connolly was born in Clones, County Monaghan, Ireland in March 1818. At the age of eleven, he immigrated to the United States with his parents. Early on, they set­tled in the Greece area. Connelly...
Categories: 1800-1850 Living in Greece Stories
Tags: Buck Pond Charlotte Civil Warr Ellen Burns Fort Sumter Island Cottage Road Janes Janes Road Jimmy Goodwin Lewis Mother of Sorrows Mr. Allen Mullen's Cooper Shop Nancy Beaty Nancy Connelly President Lincoln Railroard Valentine's Day William Connelly
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Manitou Beach Hotel – “From the Historian’s Files”

May 5, 2015 |
By far the largest and the most elegant of all the late 19th and early 20th century hotels along Lake Ontario in Greece was the Odenbach Manitou Beach Hotel. It was located at the far western end of the Manitou Beach Trolley. Built in 1888 by the Matthew and Servis...
Categories: 1850-1900 Corinthian From The Historian's Files Living in Greece Stories
Tags: Braddock Bay Charles P. Odenbach Charlotte Charlotte Beach Damon's Orchestra Fred J. Odenbach Fred Odenbach Frederick S. Odenbach John H Odenbach Manitou Beach Hotel Manitou Road Manitou Trolley Marie Villone Poinan Matthew P Odenbach Olcott Beach Sax Smith Tommy Tucker Vincent Lopez World War II
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The Manitou Trolley – Charlotte to Grand View Beach – “From The Historian’s Desk”

September 1, 2012 |
By the mid-1880s a steam railroad was planned to run from Charlotte to Grand View Beach. This plan never went beyond being chartered and was soon abandoned. The electric trolleys that began to appear on the streets of large cities seemed a more practical solution for this short line, which...
Categories: 1850-1900 From The Historian's Files Living in Greece Stories
Tags: 1895 1907 1908 1917-18 1924 1925 Beach Avenue Braddocks Bay Buck Pond Charlotte Children's Ticket Cranberry Pond East Manitou Hotel Edgemere Drive Edgewater Hotel Elmheart Hotel Grand View Beach Grand View Beach Hotel Island Cottage Hotel Little Round Pond Long Pond Pond Manitou Manitou Beach Hotel Manitou Line Odenbach Ontario Beach Park Rail Spikes World War I
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