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EchotaAt the end of Hyde Park Boulevard going towards Buffalo Avenue, you will discover the small planned community named "Enchota".
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Echota, Cherokee for “Town of Refuge,” was the brainchild of the Niagara Development Company, part of the Niagara Falls Power Company. Having recently erected the Edward Dean Adams power station nearby, the company was looking for a place to build residences for its workers. Vacant land across Buffalo Avenue was chosen for the utopian "workers" community. It bordered Buffalo Avenue on the south, Niagara Street on the north, Sugar Street (now Hyde Park Blvd.) on the east, and Gill Creek on the west. Construction on Echota began in 1894. World-renowned architect Stanford White took on the task of planning and developing the new community. Homes were built as singles, duplexes, or three and four-unit row houses. They were in Queen Anne and Georgian styles. Originally the houses were natural wood shingles with white trim, but in 1901 with the popularity of the color schemes used at the Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, the homes were painted in vibrant colors and soon became an attraction for travelers visiting the Falls. The streets were beautiful, the plumbing modern, the houses electric lit and equipped with the latest appliances. Echota included a school, a community center, a store and a public bath with aspects of this planning when one takes a harder look.
In 1910, the Niagara Development Company sold Echota and the area gradually began to decline. In 1958, the New York State Power Authority moved some of the smaller houses out to a development off Military Road. Today, Echota is a shadow of what it once was, but it still holds reminders of its past glory evoking the grand idea of a planned community.
In 1910, the Niagara Development Company sold Echota and the area gradually began to decline. In 1958, the New York State Power Authority moved some of the smaller houses out to a development off Military Road. Today, Echota is a shadow of what it once was, but it still holds reminders of its past glory evoking the grand idea of a planned community.
An Echota home saved from demolition in 2007
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An example of Echota workers home
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