Ellicottville Town Hall - Ellicottville, NY - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

The Ellicottville Town Hall, a community landmark for over 170 years, was originally constructed in 1829 as the Cattaraugus County Court House. Its long service to both the political and social history of the community has given it the character and importance for which it is noted today. A fire in 1969 damaged the interior and roof of the building. However, the Town Hall has undergone restoration.

The building was first used in 1830 for many county judicial and political purposes, and was also the location for meetings of litarary, agricultural and religious organizations as well as temperance and anti-slavery societies. In 1845, during disturbances of discontented land purchasers, known as the Dutch Hill War, the court house was center of attention. Officials feared that rioters would advance on Ellicottville to destroy land records in the building. The sheriff called out two militia companies and placed at least one cannon on the courth house lawn in anticipation of a confrontation that never occured.

In 1868 the county government was moved to Little Valley, and in the following year the town purchased the abandoned building for $1000. From then until today, the building's function has changed several times. Between 1869-1904, the building was known as the Opera House or Academy of Music. After 1904, it was used for meetings, caucuses and elections and in 1909 it was temporarily used for religious purposes. In 1947, the central school leased the building and converted it to classrooms. The town eventually resumed possession and the upper floor is now used for the village and town clerks while the first floor was used by the historical society.

Street address: 1 W Washington St Ellicottville, NY United States 14731 County / Borough / Parish: Cattaraugus Year listed: 1973 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event Periods of significance: 1825-1849 Historic function: Government, Recreation And Culture, Religion, Social: Courthouse, Meeting Hall, Music Facility, Religious Structure Current function: Government: City Hall Privately owned?: no Season start / Season finish: From: 01/01/2008 To: 12/31/2008 Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 1: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   06/02/2013 sagefemme visited it 07/17/2011 uccacher visited it 07/05/2011 Facedances visited it 05/17/2009 sherpes visited it

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