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  #1  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 5:49 PM
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Olean, NY

Olean (pop. 14,452) is the largest city in Cattaraugus County (pop. 80,317) and has an Urban Cluster population of 23,497. Located within the Allegheny Plateau and along the Allegheny River's 30 mile foray through Southwestern New York, Olean is about 1 1/2 hours drive south of Buffalo. Just a few miles north of the Pennsylvania border, Olean's major transportation link is I-86 (Southern Tier Expressway), which ties together the major centers of NY's Southern Tier and Erie, PA.

The small area surrounding Olean is the only part of New York not covered by the last glacial maximum, resulting in a dissected plateau region more rugged than the rounded hills of the rest of New York's portion of the Allegheny Plateau.

Olean was founded in 1804 and grew in the mid-1800s as a timber town and regional transportation center. In the late 1800s, Olean grew further as the oil pipeline hub for the oil boom in Northwestern Pennsylvania. Olean's population peaked in the 1950s at 24,000, which is when the oil industry left the city. Olean has maintained importance as a manufacturing center (Dresser-Rand), HQ of Cutco Cutlery, regional commercial hub and home of St. Bonaventure University.







Allegheny Plateau Vista a few miles southwest of Olean... the Southern Tier of New York is the northernmost extent of Appalachia.














The Allegheny River just south of Downtown






























Dresser-Rand factory












































What's this... a centrally-located, walkable, architecturally significant small city high school? That still functions as a high school? A rare sight indeed... normally these buildings end up demolished or converted into office space... replaced by suburban mega-campuses on the edge of town... beyond city sidewalks. Kudos to Olean.












































St. Bonaventure (enrollment 2,400) is a Franciscan university on the west side of Olean. Its men's basketball squad made the Final Four in 1970. Notable alums include Fox News business analyst Neil Cavuto.




The Village of Allegany (pop. 1,816) is located just a couple miles west of Olean on the other side of St. Bonaventure's campus. I was expecting to just drive through this area on my way to I-86 and other destinations... assuming these area would be mundane suburbia, but Allegany's gorgeous business district compelled me to stop.



























Last edited by Evergrey; Jun 29, 2011 at 10:01 PM.
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  #2  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 5:59 PM
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Gorgeous setting and gorgeous buildings. Your photos give an eerie feeling to the whole place, like it's one of those backwoods towns lost in a sea of hills a long ways from anywhere. And maybe it is? Either way, I love it.
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  #3  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 7:12 PM
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WOW!

I´ve seen really beautiful houses in your thread, Evergrey!

Thanks a lot for your pictures. I´d like lo live there. Olean looks like a very pleasant and quiet town. It´s so green and natural! I´m in love with such kind of towns.

Congratulations and greetings from Madrid, Spain!
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  #4  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 8:28 PM
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Nice tour of a forgotten New York city.
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  #5  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 8:42 PM
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Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 10:38 PM
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Really nice pics Evergrey. I never heard of Olean before now.
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  #7  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 11:38 PM
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Handsome towns, handsome houses, remarkable scenery. Thanks for showing us these wonderful small towns. I love them.
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  #8  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 11:50 PM
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I've always wanted to see more of the Southern Tier of N.Y.

Oh yeah..
http://i531.photobucket.com/albums/d...g?t=1309293490
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  #9  
Old Posted Jun 29, 2011, 11:50 PM
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Fun tour, and Allegany is a stunner. Wish I'd spent some time exploring the residential areas in Olean when I passed through. Thanks for the tour Eg.
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  #10  
Old Posted Jun 30, 2011, 3:16 AM
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Cutco country is righteous territory in my book.
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  #11  
Old Posted Jun 30, 2011, 3:51 AM
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Thank you for going there and taking pictures so I never have to. (No offense to the legions of Olean forumers)


Quote:
St. Bonaventure (enrollment 2,400) is a Franciscan university on the west side of Olean. Its men's basketball squad made the Final Four in 1970. Notable alums include Fox News business analyst Neil Cavuto.
Quite a list of accomplishments there, St. Bonaventure.
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  #12  
Old Posted Jun 30, 2011, 4:17 AM
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Nice pictures. I believe that St. Bonaventure is located in Allegany, though, although the municipal line is unclear. It could be in both Olean and Allegany.
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  #13  
Old Posted Jun 30, 2011, 2:25 PM
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mmm, shark nachos. good eye, evergrey. pretty good stock o' stuff in olean. go bonnies!
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  #14  
Old Posted Jul 7, 2011, 2:38 AM
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Definitely a city that gets lost in the shuffle of Upstate NY. Great tour. Allegany was a neat little find as well.
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  #15  
Old Posted Dec 18, 2011, 2:01 AM
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Olean is/was home of Clark Corporation, builders of large compressor engines for natural gas pipeline operations.
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  #16  
Old Posted Dec 18, 2011, 3:29 PM
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Nice small town
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  #17  
Old Posted Dec 18, 2011, 4:03 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Evergrey View Post
I ate here once! I think it's an old library turned restaurant/event space (building on the left that is).
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  #18  
Old Posted Dec 19, 2011, 4:57 PM
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The architecture is impeccable. Nice town and great photos, thanks!
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  #19  
Old Posted Dec 20, 2011, 6:13 PM
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Beautifull place and beautifull buildings !!!!
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  #20  
Old Posted Jan 3, 2012, 3:00 PM
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Greetings –
I am saddened to see North Olean looking like it does in the photo. My great-grandfather would be spinning in his grave to see his store and my grandfather's barber shop in such disrepair.

But thank you for posting such lovely scenes in the other photographs.

MizzW
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