TONAWANDA, NY - Niagara Falls Boulevard and Eggert Road, traffic flies by everyday unaware that this was one of the early spots that Western New York took flight. But the clues are all around as one name pops up everywhere, Curtis.
It is still unclear why "Curtis" is spelled with just one "s", because the Curtis Park neighborhood of Tonawanda is named after the Curtiss Aerodrome. It sat near the corner of what is now Curtis Parkway and Eggert Road, one block from Niagara Falls Boulevard.
The Aerodrome was built in 1920 to serve as a resource for the Curtiss Motor and Airplane Company, later Curtiss-Wright. What it became was the primary airport serving the Buffalo area from 1920 until 1927, when the airport opened on Genesee Street. The Aerodrome closed in 1929.
Today a boulder on Eggert Road bears a bronze plaque telling the story, and Curtis Parkway gives you the opportunity to trace a path through history as it sits on the footprint of the old runway.