Cheektowaga

History

Cheektowaga's earliest known historic occupants were the Iroquoian-speaking Neutral people. They were pushed out by the more powerful Seneca people, the most western of the Five Nations of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, who were seeking to control the fur trade. They named this site as Chictawauga, meaning "land of the crabapples" in the Seneca language. It was not until well after the American Revolutionary War that European-American settlers began to live here permanently. The Seneca had been forced to cede most of their land to the United States after the war, as they had been British allies. Cheektowaga was formed from the Town of Amherst on March 22, 1839. Upon the formation of West Seneca on October 16, 1851, it was reduced to its present limits—about . Throughout the 19th century, it was referred to by its original name, Chictawauga. Originally a rural farming area, the town was extensively developed for suburban housing during the post-World War II subdivision boom of the 1950s. Aided as well by the construction of highways to serve the area, factories such as the Westinghouse Electric Corporation plant on Genesee Street were built here (since demolished). The plant generated employment to the area for many decades. The town maintains a strong blue-collar presence. Cheektowaga has a large Polish-American community, much of which relocated from Buffalo's East Side, and about 39.9% of population is of Polish heritage. The Walden Galleria opened in 1989, becoming the Buffalo Niagara region's largest mall. Cheektowaga is home to St. John Gualbert's Parish, which is a small Catholic church housing the Shrine of the Holy Relics of the Saints, believed to be one of the largest collections in the United States. Garrison Cemetery, Our Lady Help of Christians…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.21%, is water. *Williamsville – A small part of the village of Williamsville (shared with the town of Amherst) The Town of Cheektowaga is served by 9 Volunteer Fire districts with 10 companies, and 12 Stations, and 2 Volunteer Municipal Fire Departments with 2 stations within the Town Doyle 1 and 2, Rescue Hose, U-Crest Fire, Forks, Bellevue, South Line, Cleveland Hill, Hy-View, Pine Hill, Sloan Active Hose. On July 30, 1987, an F1 tornado touched down in the Union Road and George Urban Boulevard area. It grew to an F2 before dissipating. Homes and business suffered serious damage, but there were no fatalities or severe injuries. This tornado is locally memorable as the one which ripped the roof off the Holiday Showcase Restaurant and damaged a nearby Putt Putt miniature golf center. On June 30, 2006, another F1 tornado touched down not far from the site of the 1987 tornado. Again, homes and businesses - including the Holiday Showcase, which was remodeled soon after - were damaged, and a tractor trailer was knocked over on the NY State Thruway, but no one was killed. The Town also falls into the significant "Lake Effect" Snow band that crosses the area, and has been effected by historic Snow events including The Blizzard of '77, the Blizzard of '85, "The October Surprise","Snowvember", and the 2022 Christmas blizzard.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  34,553
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  34,299
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  31,184
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  29,832
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  27,200
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  27,152
• Ring-billed Gull

  Larus delawarensis Ord, 1815 · Aves
  26,211
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  26,105

Largest nearby schools

• CHARTER SCHOOL FOR APPLIED TECHNOLOGIES
  Other · BUFFALO · 2,309 students · 11.5:1 ratio
• LANCASTER HIGH SCHOOL
  High · LANCASTER · 1,652 students · 12.3:1 ratio
• ORCHARD PARK HIGH SCHOOL
  High · ORCHARD PARK · 1,385 students · 11.7:1 ratio
• KENMORE WEST SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
  High · BUFFALO · 1,358 students · 9.5:1 ratio
• WILLIAMSVILLE NORTH HIGH SCHOOL
  High · WILLIAMSVILLE · 1,321 students · 11.6:1 ratio
• WILLIAM STREET SCHOOL
  Middle · LANCASTER · 1,293 students · 14.1:1 ratio
• CLARENCE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
  High · CLARENCE · 1,284 students · 11.4:1 ratio
• HUTCHINSON CENTRAL TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL
  High · BUFFALO · 1,175 students · 12.6:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 3.8 — 2023-02-06
  1 km NE of West Seneca, New York
• M 2.6 — 2022-03-15
  5 km SSW of Warsaw, New York
• M 2.6 — 2020-03-29
  11 km N of Lyndonville, New York
• M 3 — 2018-05-08
  14 km SSE of Ajax, Canada
• M 2.52 — 2017-07-11
  11 km NNW of Barker, New York
• M 2.46 — 2014-02-13
  34 km N of Lyndonville, New York