The Western New York Land Conservancy will be hosting a special history walk at the Stella Niagara Preserve in Lewiston on Saturday, Aug. 27. The hike will take place from 3 to 5 p.m. and will be led by Karen Noonan, a member of the Town of Porter Historical Society and the Youngstown Heritage Tours and Tourism Committee. Tickets cost $25 each and can be purchased at Eventbrite.com (search keywords “Stella Niagara Preserve”). All proceeds will support the work of the Western New York Land Conservancy.
The Stella Niagara Preserve was permanently protected last year when the Land Conservancy purchased the property from the Sisters of St. Francis. The property is located on the Niagara County Historic Trail and is part of the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area.
The preserve was an important canoe landing site for the region’s Haudenosaunee who used the Niagara River for transport, trade and fishing. Stella is the very spot where the British landed in 1813 to capture Fort Niagara. It has been home to the Sisters of St. Francis since 1907. The chapel was in the national spotlight in 1955 when it miraculously survived an ice jam and flood that destroyed many other properties along the river. The property is also home to several sgraffito-style murals by Józef Sławiński, a renowned Polish artist.
Members of the community are invited to come and learn about all of this and more at a unique tour of our region’s newest nature preserve. For more information, please contact the Land Conservancy at in**@wn***.org or (716) 687-1225.
The Western New York Land Conservancy is a regional, not-for-profit land trust that permanently protects land with significant conservation value in Western New York for future generations. The Land Conservancy envisions a future in which open spaces, working lands, wildlife habitat and scenic beauty are cherished and protected as part of the landscape and character of Western New York. The Land Conservancy is accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission and is one of 1,700 land trusts nationwide, including 90 in New York State. Land trusts have protected 40 million acres over the last 20 years. For more information on upcoming events, volunteer opportunities or the mission of the Western New York Land Conservancy, please call (716) 687-1225 or visit www.wnylc.org.
