While in town to visit the Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz Museum and National Comedy Center, we took the time to check out some of the Historic District in downtown Jamestown, NY.
It is less walkable than Warren due to increased traffic, plus it was drizzling rain, so we focused on a couple of quiet blocks near the museum and comedy center.
Two stately bank buildings stood across from each other like sentries as you walked uphill into downtown. The one pictured was once Bank of Jamestown.
Some properties seemed updated and in good repair. This corner facing building from the early 1900s featured a steak house and a beauty salon on the ground floor. The contrasting modern black facing on the lower floors is historic now as well, being added in the mid-20th century.
This event space named for its address at 31 Main has a great color and interesting details. It also gets great reviews on Google if you are looking to throw a party in Jamestown.
It stood at the corner of Main Street and West 1st Street alongside another older building which was now a church mission to those in need. The hill is so steep that this street was a full story or more lower than the parking lot across the street where we stood to take this photo.
It was clear that some of the buildings downtown had seen better days. The Arcade building was built in 1898 and is on a list of endangered historic places. Its next door neighbor was on that same list until it was torn down a few years ago. You can still see its mark on the Arcade where the brick is lighter along the side. A tiny building once wedged between the Arcade and the railroad, also lost to time.
We only captured a few pictures before the drizzle became a threat to our phones. We retreated to Ecklof Bakery, recommended to us as the best bakery in Jamestown. There we found chicken salad, and bread for our evening meal, pink frosted sugar cookies for dessert, and cinnamon rolls for the next day’s breakfast. It was all delicious. .
It’s hard to believe we only have a few more days in this area. That cool drizzle will be sorely missed once we are back in the high temperatures of the deep south.
What’s the weather like where you are today? Hot and humid or cool and breezy? Or somewhere in between? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below.