To spot the Delaware Avenue Historic District, look just ahead along the west side of Delaware Avenue between North Street and Bryant Street-it's that impressive stretch of grand old mansions with elegant stonework and soaring decorative details lining the block.
Welcome to what was once known as Millionaires’ Mile-go ahead, take a deep breath! Can you imagine the air thick with the scent of fresh-cut grass and the distant clip-clop of horse-drawn carriages, back when this avenue was the place to see and be seen? In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Buffalo had more millionaires per person than anywhere else in America, and this very stretch of road was their red carpet.
Picture dazzling parties spilling out onto manicured lawns, guests in tuxedos and ball gowns chatting beneath gas lanterns. Each mansion you see here-like the Williams-Butler House or the intricate Clement House-was a trophy for its owner, built in bold Renaissance Revival or Gothic Revival styles that screamed, “I’ve made it!” Sometimes it must have felt like the buildings themselves were trying to outdo each other. Would you believe the famous Temple Beth Zion was here in two incarnations, each more striking than the last?
Stories echo from every stoop: the thunderous laughter of a socialite’s gala, whispered deals over cigars on grand porches, and, of course, the silent pride of architects like McKim, Mead & White and E.B. Green, who worked their magic here. Over a century later, the old mansions host new dreams-Red Cross workers, temple-goers, and everyday Buffalonians. Even though times have changed, the avenue stands as a testament to both the ambition and imagination that made Buffalo sparkle. Millionaires may come and go, but legend? Now that sticks around. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself wishing you could sneak through one of those gilded doors and join a ball of your own!
