Joseph Ellicott Historic District
historic district in Buffalo, New York, United States
Joseph Ellicott Historic District is a local historic district in Buffalo, New York. It is in the vicinity of Niagara Square, which was designed by Joseph Ellicott as the centerpiece of the city's street plan in 1805.
History
The district was founded on November 30, 1982, by the Buffalo Preservation Board. It is bordered to the North by West Mohawk Street, to the East by Franklin Street, to the South by Swan Street, and to the West by Elmwood Avenue.
Sahlen Field encroached on the southern border of the district when it was built in 1988, although the Buffalo Preservation Board approved the venue's construction after the architecture was designed to match the neighboring Ellicott Square Building and Old Post Office.
Notable extant buildings
Notable buildings include:
68 Court Street – Michael J. Dillon Memorial United States Courthouse (1936) by Edward Brodhead Green
107 Delaware Avenue – Statler Hotel (1923) by George B. Post and Sons
121 Ellicott Street – Old Post Office (1897) by James Knox Taylor
50 Franklin Street – St.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Joseph Ellicott Historic District” is historic district in Buffalo, New York, United States. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Joseph, Ellicott and Historic, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “historic district in Buffalo, New York, United States” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jan 11, 2023. The linked authority identifier is Q113714745. Authority coordinates are 42.884, -78.878. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1805, 1982, 1988 and 1936.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Joseph Ellicott Historic District”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Joseph Ellicott Historic District primary sources, Joseph Ellicott Historic District archive and Joseph research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Joseph Ellicott Historic District”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Joseph Ellicott Historic District” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.