There is no better way to portray the quality of life in an area other than to read old newspaper stories associated with that area. The book "Growing Pains: Kenmore-Tonawanda Comes of Age", by John W. Percy, is a collection of stories taken from various Tonawanda and Kenmore newspapers from the past century. These stories range from the historically enlightening to the outright absurd. Several of the stories are reproduced on this page.

For further reading, John Percy's book is available at most local bookstores, the Buffalo & Erie County Historical Society and the Historical Society of the Tonawandas. The contents of this site were reproduced with the permission of the author. Illustrations by Robert Jumper.

Life in Old Ellwood | Thoughts of Ellwood | Oddities and Strange Happenings

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