7 Firsts That Started Right Here in Western New York

Western New York is home to many firsts, including the first state park in New York, the Niagara State Reservation, as well as the first dog licensing law in the nation, first flour milling company and chicken wings. Let's take a closer look at seven other firsts that came out of Western New York:

• William A. Hart drilled the First natural gas well in Fredonia in 1821
• Lockport established the first union school district in the United States, as state legislature passed an act organizing the seven common schools into one district, in 1847.
• The first timber dry dock in the nation was built in Buffalo, NY, in 1840 to service Great Lakes ships.
• The first railway suspension bridge in the world opened over the Niagara Gorge in 1855. The bridge took four years to build and served as a prototype for future bridges, including his Brooklyn Bridge.
• First National Bank of Attica became the first national bank to fail in the United States in 1865.
• The first electric street lights in the country were lit on Ganson Street in the 1880s.
• The first day care center in the the nation was founded in 1881 in Buffalo, NY.

 Source: buffaloah.com