525 Riverside Drive, Niagara Falls, NY
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Holley-Rankine House served as the residence of men prominent in the economic, political and social life of Niagara Falls, a city which owed its early development to the abundant power available from the Niagara River. Numerous mills, which had been established along the river in the early 19th century, were by mid-century consolidated into several companies. One of the largest of these was owned by Porter Brothers, a firm created in the 1840s by A. Augustus Porter and Peter Porter, together with George Washington Holley (1810-1897) who was a distant relative of the Porters. Holley, whose family was involved with politics, was elected to a term in the New York State Assembly in 1853. He was later appointed to serve as U.S. Consul in Naples before becoming Deputy Collector of Customs at Niagara Falls in 1865.
In 1855, during his tenure in the state assembly, Holley purchased from Peter Porter a wooded tract of land overlooking the Niagara River, just above the American Falls. On this land he built his substantial villa, which was mentioned in Holley
Plus the wall between Main Street and the Devil’s Hole!
Ditto to the previous two comments. We have lost so much of our history we can’t allow any more to go down the drain.
Great article. We need to see if this house is designated a local landmark. That whole neighborhood is beautiful and should be an historic district so that we can prevent demolitions.
Nice piece. And that whole area needs to be reopened to the riverfront and all the stately homes preserved.
My previous reply was aimed directly at Danny-boy!