(Seal of Chautauqua County displayed at the New York World's Fair 1939-1940.)
Research by Norman Carlson, Chautauqua County Historian
Chautauqua County has a rich and fascinating history, filled with moments of innovation, resilience, and community spirit. From major fires and schoolhouse traditions to groundbreaking legislation and cultural milestones, each date tells a unique story of the county’s past. The following is a collection of notable historical events that occurred in Chautauqua County and the surrounding region on these dates throughout history.
April 6
1860 – First mention of a fire extinguisher in a Jamestown newspaper.
1866 – Levant Wesleyan Methodist Church organized.
1971 – Busti Shamrocks 4-H Mill restoration account opened with $500 from Readers' Digest. Mill restoration completed in 2013.
2005 – New (second) pool at Jamestown Boys' and Girls' Club opened.
April 7
1847 – Resolution to build a schoolhouse on Stoneledge Road and paint it checkerboard. Subsequently famed as a quaint curiosity.
1868 – 1 a.m., fire destroyed seven buildings in Sinclairville.
1910 – Jamestown High School senior class left for Washington, D.C. on first official senior class trip.
1913 – Voting machines used in every election district in Jamestown for the first time.
1931 – North Harmony's famed checkerboard school burned. It was later rebuilt. (see March 7)
1957 – Start of a two-day snowstorm totaling 21 inches in Jamestown.
2002 – David Kaczynski, brother of the notorious Unabomber, visited Dunkirk.
April 8
1837 – Frewsburgh (so spelled) post office established.
1879 – Silver Creek Union School organized.
1897 – Oil well drilling started in Poland.
1917 – Eaton L. Moses, genius-vagrant widely known in Chautauqua County, died. Funeral attended by many prominent people.
1920 – Roger Tory Peterson's "bird epiphany" in Jamestown—start of his lifelong intense interest in birds. He was 12.
1946 – County Board of Supervisors commissioned Adon Trimm to paint a portrait of Joseph McGinnis (1861-1945), NYS Assemblyman from Ripley.
1964 – J. R. H. Co. incorporated, forerunner of developer of Cockaigne Ski Lodge in Cherry Creek. Slopes opened in 1966; closed in 2023.
1971 – 600,000 pounds of titanium burned in Frewsburg.
1984 – First Baptist Church, Jamestown dedicated.
1986 – Jamestown Boys' and Girls' Clubs merged.
1986 – Removal of rail overpass bridge on Rte. 394 in Mayville began.
1991 – Chautauqua County Rails to Trails incorporated.
April 9
1908 – Roosevelt Elm planted at Jamestown High School in honor of Theodore Roosevelt, who visited and spoke there two years later.
1909 – Browning Society (poetry and literature) organized in Jamestown.
1969 – Groundbreaking for new City Hall, Jamestown.
April 10
1821 – First issue of the Fredonia Censor, the first Chautauqua County newspaper.
1897 – Jamestown Kodak Club organized.
1956 – Heavy snowfall.
1964 – Escalator installed in Jamestown at Bigelow's—one of only two in town.
1994 – Jamestown Naval Reserve Center closed; Schutt's Saw and Mower is now located there.
April 11
1815 – Peak violence of the Tomboro volcanic eruption in Indonesia, probable cause for the "Year Without a Summer" (1816), which affected Chautauqua County and much of the world.
1893 – Work began on Jamestown's sewer system.
1900 – Canning companies formed in Kennedy and Frewsburg.
1951 – Charles Lawson donated land for the Southwestern Central School building.
1961 – New Mayville library opened.
1965 – First service held in the new Lakewood United Methodist Church house.
1974 – Cummins Engine announced intent to move into the Art Metal plant in Busti.
1993 – Heart transplant for Jamestown's Tina Sardo.
2002 – First Pearl City Lyceum, discussing Jamestown's economic future.
2005 – Visitor Center in Ellery on Route I-86 opened.
April 12
1834 – Four families left Prickwillow, England to settle in Jamestown. (Arrived June 20.)
1900 – Around this date, Ralph Breed left Busti for his third year playing first tuba with the Ringling Brothers Circus.
1922 – Zoning first enacted in Jamestown.
