Shufflin' around Buffalo

I admit it. When I hear "Buffalo, New York," the first thing that comes to mind isn't gorgeous flowers (like the tulips in my latest Wordless Wednesday post, taken in the churchyard of St. Joseph's in downtown Buffalo) or great urban architecture. At least, those items didn't used to come to mind.

But that's why traveling is so great! Even to random cities that host library conferences! You get to learn that stereotypes don't tell the whole story—about anywhere.

Granted, if I'd been in Buffalo a few months ago, the snowy stereotype would no doubt have been verified. But last week, it was beautiful there and a totally unexpected experience.

I wish I'd had more time to walk around and explore more of their lovely downtown, and I'm especially sorry I didn't even get to the Erie lakefront (although I could see it from my hotel room window). But they keep us pretty busy at these meetings (put on by the Government Printing Office, the same outfit that ran the shows in Tampa, Florida, last spring and Washington last fall).

My roomie and I did take a short walk, though, around the delightful downtown that our hotel was on the edge of, and I was so impressed with the buildings. As well as the scale of their downtown, which is rather small, like ours, unintimidating while still being interesting.

That's part of their county courthouse at the top of the post. And their city hall, a really stunning art deco exhibition, is on the left.

We were very intrigued by the obelisk in front of it, having seen it from down the street earlier, and spent some time guessing what it was memorializing. But none of our guesses approached the touching particular-ness of it. Here is the inscription that was along one side:

WILLIAM McKINLEY DIED IN
BUFFALO SEPTEMBER 14, 1901
VICTIM OF A TREACHEROUS
ASSASSIN WHO SHOT THE
PRESIDENT AS HE WAS
EXTENDING TO HIM THE
HAND OF COURTESY

What a poignant reminder of what was, in my memory at least, a little-recalled American history footnote. Another reason to travel: to see where history actually happened.

More great buildings are all over downtown, including the gracefully shaped office building above on the right, and this one, the aptly-named Liberty building, with not one, but two Statue of Liberty clones atop it!

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Now, to be fair, snow isn't the only thing that stereotypically comes to mind when you hear "Buffalo," and its other claim to fame will be the subject of my next post (along with more of those wonderful flowers) . But, here's a hint: