Cattaraugus County Museum

04/14/2026

The next installment of our America 250 local history series is now available on the museum's YouTube channel. In this episode, Ellicottville Town Historian Ellen Frank discusses the life of Joseph Ellicott, surveyor for the Holland Land Company, and his role in helping settle what became Cattaraugus County.

Cattaraugus County; 250 Years in the Making: In this episode, Ellicottville Town Historian Ellen Frank discusses the life of Joseph Ellicott, surveyor for th...

03/31/2026

Check out the first video in our new series, Cattaraugus County; 250 Years in the Making: The Underground Railroad.

As part of the America 250 celebrations, these monthly videos aim to highlight different facets of Cattaraugus County's history by showcasing our local historians and researcher.

In this installment, Della Moore, director if the Olean African American Center for Cultural Development, discusses the Underground Railroad in Cattaraugus County and the life of Sarah Johnson, who escaped slavery in Maryland and settled in Olean in the early 1820s.

Cattaraugus County; 250 Years in the Making: Della Moore, director if the Olean African American Center for Cultural Development, discusses the Underground R...

02/12/2026

Mark your calendars! Our 2026 summer schedule is set!

12/11/2025

Please view our new addition to the Our Veterans, Their Stories.

Tom Perison, colonel, Army Nation Guard retired, 1983-2016, began his career as a lieutenant assigned to combat engineering but changed to Armor was assigned to Charlie Company 127 out of Olean, where he served as a tank commander. Later in his career as a full-time officer in the Guard, he happened to be walking to the Pentagon when American Airlines flight 77 crashed into the building. He then served as a volunteer helping the wounded out in the parking lot.

This is a very strong and emotional story of his experience.

00:31 Serving in Olean, New York12:37 9/11 Attack on the Pentagon21:30 9/12 dealing with what he experiencedTom Perison talking about his experiences serving...

10/28/2025

The Cattaraugus County Museum and Research Library has announced the opening of a new exhibit focusing on manufacturing in Cattaraugus County, past and present. The display was conceived through a partnership with Cattaraugus Allegany Dream It, Do It, and researched and designed by a DIDI intern.

The origin for the display came early this year when Evelyn Sabina, executive director of CA-DIDI, approached museum staff with the suggestion that the museum could host an exhibit that could highlight some of the manufacturers in the county that frequently work with DIDI. This past summer, Sabina assigned summer intern Theodore McClellan the task of researching and developing the display.

“”Teddy was one of our Dream It, Do It interns this summer, and when he had his initial interview we were asking for their interests, and one of his interests was history. So I thought it would be great if this could be one of his projects,” explained Sabina.

“He really took this on, full steam ahead. He went and did the research, he met with people, he gathered artifacts. It was most impressive. … I believe he learned a lot,” she continued.

“I started out by finding any documents I could on the companies,” said McClellan. “And then it was more meeting with the manufacturer and getting items from them that we could put on display.”

McClellan subsequently toured several local facilities, such as Cutco, KA-BAR, SolEpoxy and ASK Chemicals, meeting with staff and obtaining loan items to use in the exhibit. He also researched and wrote profiles of past manufacturers as well as conducting research on the oil industry.

“It was (a rewarding experience), no only because this was my first big project, but there was a lot of experience with meetings and researching. I got to learn a lot and benefitted by some of the skills I gained,” said McClellan.

Sabina feels that the process of putting this display together could have a long-term benefit for the manufacturers as well.

“I think this (compiling a history) is something that a lot of the companies are starting to do more of, because it’s very interesting hearing about the history. This is a great project, I think, that Teddy did. He did a great job,” she said.

09/08/2025

08/28/2025

We are live!

The Cattaraugus County Museum’s Summer at the Stone House event series concludes its 2025 schedule with a presentation by genealogist and educator Jeanette S...

08/28/2025

UPDATE: Tonight's final Summer at the Stone House event of 2025 will be moved indoors due to projected weather conditions for this evening. Our speaker, Jeanette Sheliga, will give a presentation titled "Between the Census Years," which will deal with methods of genealogical research available when information is not in the census. We hope you can join us!

For those who cannot attend, watch from home on our livestream here:

The Cattaraugus County Museum’s Summer at the Stone House event series concludes its 2025 schedule with a presentation by genealogist and educator Jeanette S...

08/26/2025

The Cattaraugus County Museum’s Summer at the Stone House event series concludes its 2025 schedule with a presentation by genealogist and educator Jeanette Sheliga. The program is titled “Between the Census Years.” It will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 28. If you can't make it in person, watch here:

The Cattaraugus County Museum’s Summer at the Stone House event series concludes its 2025 schedule with a presentation by genealogist and educator Jeanette S...

08/19/2025

The museum’s annual “Summer at the Stone House” event series will conclude its 2025 season on Thursday, Aug. 28, with a presentation by an expert in genealogical research.

The talk, titled “Between the Census Years,” will be given by Jeanette Sheliga, an educator, blogger, lecturer and librarian from Lockport.

“In addition to city directories and newspapers, there are many other records that you may find your ancestors listed in to help bridge the gap between censuses. This presentation will explore numerous sources, such as maps, voter lists, church records, membership directories, local government proceedings, and more,” Sheliga explained.

Sheliga began genealogical lecturing in 2011 and soon after formed the North Tonawanda Library Genealogy Club, which she managed for 10 years. In 2013, she became a board member for the Niagara County Genealogical Society. She is also the society vice president, NGS Delegate and the program chairperson.

Sheliga is a member of many lineage societies, including the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, First Families of Pennsylvania, National Society Descendants of American Farmers and the National Society of Mayflower Descendants.

In addition, in the fall of 2020, she became the Virtual Genealogical Society's (VGA) corresponding secretary and was elected to become a member of the board of directors for the Western New York Genealogical Society (WNYGS). While serving on the board for WNYGS, she became a contributing editor for the WNYGS's quarterly publication, The Journal, and selected as the programming chair.

For more information on Sheliga, visit jeanettesgenealogy.com.

The program will begin at 7 p.m. and will take place under a tent on the museum lawn, rain or shine. Some seating will be available, but attendees are encouraged to bring their own chairs if they wish. This event is free and open to the public.

The program will be livestreamed on the museum’s YouTube channel for those who are unable to attend in person. A link to the livestream will be posted on the museum’s page closer to the date of the event.

08/14/2025

We are live!

The Cattaraugus County Museum’s Summer at the Stone House continues Thursday, Aug. 14 at 7 p.m. with a discussion of the history of the Erie Canal given by S...