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Seneca falls is situated between the norther extremities of Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake. Because of its position on northerly routes from Ithaca it was visited by every member of the group on at least one occasion. The Village, as it is termed, sits on the Seneca-Cayuga Canal which links it to both lakes and to the Erie Canal System, a principal transportation artery of the first industrial revolution in the United States.
1848 was a significant date for northern New York. In Europe political events in Germany started the migration stream which gave Rochester the necessary knowledge base to secure its central role in the development of commercial photography and photocopying. The same year saw the first Women's Rights Convention held in the Seneca Falls Wesleyan Chapel. The remains of the chapel now form the Women's Rights National Historical Park
The convention led to the signing of a Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions which is commemorated in the park on a wall containing both its text and the names of its signatories.
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In 1923 Alice Paul called for an Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in Seneca Falls.
A National Women's Hall of Fame was established in 1969 in a former bank building.
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The Women's hall of Fame celebrates the
achievements of a wide range of American women from Bella Abzug to Mildred
"Babe Didrikson Zaharias. It maintains a web-site at www.greatwomen.org where a full listing is available. The site is supported by a grant from Eastman Kodak |
1848 also saw the establishment of Gould Pumps, now part of ITT, but still a significant industrial employer. The limestone knitting mills also still in operation, predates these events, commencing operation in 1844. Elsewhere heavier, there is evidence of the decline of the original industrial base, and the importance to the town of its historical heritage, and a position which is now strategic in terms of tourism and leisure boating rather than commercial water traffic.
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Despite the survival of historic employers there is evidence of long term decline in the original economic base of Seneca Falls |