Buffalo Architecture: A Guide

Reading all the rave reviews on this page made this an easy purchase, but I was disappointed with what arrived.This thin, outdated catalog is not the kind of quality you would expect for the architectural treasure that is Buffalo. This city achieved fabulous material and spiritual wealth as the focal point of three important socioeconomic events - economic growth as a result of the completion of the Erie Canal, the expansion of the Second Great Awakening, and the expansion of European immigration. Buffalo's rich architecture belies its reputation as a desperately poor, crime-ridden, ugly city. In fact, one can argue (as I do) that it contains the most important ensemble of 19th-century urban architecture in the United States, and its Victorian cityscape is among the best in the world. Buffalo deserves a better book.What you get here is a catalog of landmark structures, chosen and published in 1981. The book is standard AIA format, though it is not an AIA publication. The sites are organized into geographic areas. Some of the 200 featured structures come with a brief descriptive essay, some come with a short descriptive sentence, and a few include no description at all, other than a name and address. The catalog itself is woefully incomplete. All the sites are in downtown, near north or near west sides. The important EAST SIDE, Broadway and Ellicott are almost entirely absent, and essentially dismissed as "troubled areas." That's too bad. People who know Buffalo know what kind of treasures are hiding in these "troubled areas," and they are urgently important to the architectural and cultural history of the city. For example, three conspicuously omitted landmarks are St. Mary of Sorrows Roman Catholic Church (a National Historic Landmark), St. Adalbert's Basilica (the first basilica in the United States), and Canisius College.The photography is also incomplete, with only about half of the entries including one. If there is a photograph, it is of purely pragmatic, stock quality. There's no attempt at artistry, but there are a few interesting interior shots.So, while it's nice to have SOMETHING which represents awesome Buffalo, we need a serious expansion and update of current offerings, particularly with the National Trust for Historic Preservation coming to town in October 2011!This book can be used as a decent walking tour guide for serious cultural tourists, but its relative lack of detail will make its value limited for architectural historians.

This book is a comprehensive review of numerous architectural marvels-- treasures that rarely exist in other US cities. The downtown "skyscrapers" constructed at the turn of the century have endured as a result of the economic downfall of a great city Fortunately, in regard to these works of art, there was no money available to destroy these buildings and replace them with "modern" designs. "Lemons" to some, turned into a very fine visual lemonade! A reminder that things from the past can be truly appreciated today! I've alreaady recommended this book to many.

Good as expected but a little outdated and not every building named has a picture

Great book, fast delivery

This book was my bible as a pre-teen in the mid-1990s; I read it so much all the pages were dogeared. But it was somewhat out of date even then. I would recommend this to anyone wanting an in depth . There are many pictures, but some minor buildings don't have them. This is less concerning than it used to be as anyone can now image search to find MANY pictures of any building they like.

people have to see how great buffalo is and was; lovely old pictures, lovely old homes, lots of snow, quite a history

This book acts in many ways as the unofficial guidebook to exploring what is one of the most important architectural cities in America.For those who are familiar with Buffalo and those who are not the book is filled with a splendid variety of both well known Richardson and Wright masterpieces and some not so well known masterpieces. Its divided into sections based on the geography of the city so it makes the perfect book if one wants to set out exploring. Buffalos neighborhoods and amazing housing stock are unparalleled in size and preservation nationwide. Its American Indian inspired art deco city hall, perhaps the finest building of its type in the nation is just one of buildings you will find profiled. Reyner Banham ,the editor,was at the time was on the faculty at the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Architecture. His wonderful book about the origins of the modern movement and its ties to Buffalos grain elevators, A Concrete Atlantis could act as a supplement to Buffalo Architecture: A Guide if you are interested in Buffalos industrial buildings as well...

The book rocks, so does the city. Buy it!