Seal of Buffalo, New York

Last updated


The municipal seal of Buffalo is the official seal of the City of Buffalo, United States. The seal contains a historic depiction of Buffalo harbor surrounded by the legend, "Seal of the City of Buffalo."

Contents

History

First Seal

Though founded in 1831, the City of Buffalo did not have an official seal until 1919.

Upon a request by the Julius Bien Company in New York City to provide a description of the municipal banner, the Common Council adopted its first official flag and seal.

The official seal was described by the Common Council: “To the left center lighthouse on pier with ship passing it into harbor. To the lower right canal boat passing into canal to the right surrounded in circle by the legend ‘City of Buffalo, Incorporated 1832.’”

Two Seals

The city flag, also established, was meant to incorporate the official city seal. When produced though, the flag did not include the seal passed by the Common Council. Instead, the seal illustrated a slightly different port scene, the pier and the ship were different, and two port animals drag the canal boat into harbor the opposite direction.

By 1930, the seal ordinance that was passed in 1912 had been omitted by the Common Council. For the next ten years, Buffalo was again without an official city seal. Instead, until 1939 with the ordinance of a new official seal, Buffalo would have two unofficial seals in circulation. One seal, that established by the Common Council in 1912 was used by most departments in City Hall. The other seal, the one appearing on the flag and surrounded by the legend, “Seal of the City of Buffalo,” was used on all official documents of the Mayor and Comptroller.

Current Seal

Early in 1939 a Buffalo News articles revealed that Buffalo lacked an official seal and brought the two seal discrepancy to the public eye. Just two days later the Common Council proposed a new official seal, the Mayoral version. By mid November the new seal was certified and by mid December it was repealed. It was determined that additional stonecutting costs would total $3,200 if the new design was placed on the façade of Convention Hall, therefore the seal was repealed.

Eight days after its repeal, the ordinance detailing the seal was reinstated. The official seal of the City of Buffalo was described: “To the left center, lighthouse on pier; to the right of the lighthouse, ship with three masts showing sails; to the lower right, canal boat drawn by two draft animals proceeding in direction leading toward or past pier; the above, all, surrounded by a double circle and between said circles appearing the words ‘SEAL OF THE CITY OF BUFFALO.’" It appears that the current seal is an evolved form of a former Buffalo seal from the mid 19th century.

Related Research Articles

Inner Harbor Neighborhood of Baltimore in Maryland, United States

The Inner Harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and landmark of the city of Baltimore, Maryland. It was described by the Urban Land Institute in 2009 as "the model for post-industrial waterfront redevelopment around the world". The Inner Harbor is located at the mouth of Jones Falls, creating the wide and short northwest branch of the Patapsco River. The district includes any water west of a line drawn between the foot of President Street and the American Visionary Art Museum.

Seal of Seattle

The seal of Seattle consists of an artist's profile portrait of Chief Seattle under which appears the Arabic numerals 1869, the year of the city's incorporation in the Common Era. It is surrounded by two circles. The words Corporate Seal Of The are at the top within the outer circle, and the words City of Seattle are at the top within the inner circle.

Glenelg, South Australia Suburb of Adelaide, South Australia

Glenelg is a beach-side suburb of the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Located on the shore of Holdfast Bay in Gulf St Vincent, it has become a tourist destination due to its beach and many attractions, home to several hotels and dozens of restaurants.

Port of Boston Seaport district in Boston, Massachusetts

The Port of Boston is a major seaport located in Boston Harbor and adjacent to the City of Boston. It is the largest port in Massachusetts and one of the principal ports on the East Coast of the United States.

Canal Park is a tourist and recreation-oriented district of Duluth, Minnesota, United States. Situated across the Interstate 35 freeway from Downtown Duluth, it is connected by the Aerial Lift Bridge across the Duluth Ship Canal to the Park Point sandbar and neighborhood. Canal Park Drive and Lake Avenue South serve as the main routes in Canal Park. Canal Park is largely a conversion of an old warehouse district into restaurants, shops, cafés, and hotels. This conversion began in the 1980s as an attempt to use Duluth's rich industrial past, the decline of which had left the city in economic turmoil at the time, as an asset in a prospective tourist industry. The Duluth Entertainment Convention Center (DECC) now connected to the new Amsoil Arena and the area's prominent entertainment venue, is also located in the district. The DECC provides an indoor connection to the skywalk system in Downtown Duluth.

Seal of New York City Official government emblem of the U.S. city of New York City

The seal of New York City is the city's official corporate insignia. According to the city's Administrative Code, it is used to identify documents or publications issued under the authority of the city or its departments. It is also engraved into property owned by the city, used to identify officers of the city, and featured on the city's flag.

Flag of Buffalo, New York

The municipal flag of Buffalo is the official banner of the city of Buffalo, New York. The navy blue flag contains a large central emblem consisting of the city seal with 13 "electric flashes" and interspaced 5-pointed white stars emanating from it.

Flag of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US city flag

The flag of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is a triband flag featuring vertical bands of black and gold and the city's coat of arms in the center.

West End, New Orleans New Orleans neighborhood in Louisiana, United States

West End is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Lakeview District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Lake Pontchartrain to the north, the New Basin Canal and Pontchartrain Boulevard to the east, Veterans Boulevard to the south, and the 17th Street Canal to the west. The area was largely built on land reclaimed from Lake Pontchartrain. It is a commercial seafood and recreational boating hub for the city and has been known for its seafood restaurants. In recent years, the area has seen large condominium-complex developments built which overlook the Lake, marinas, and centrally located 30-acre (120,000 m2) West End Park.

Chicago Harbor Light

The Chicago Harbor Lighthouse is an automated active lighthouse, and stands at the south end of the northern breakwater protecting the Chicago Harbor, to the east of Navy Pier and the mouth of the Chicago River.

Great Lakes passenger steamers Aspect of history

The history of commercial passenger shipping on the Great Lakes is long but uneven. It reached its zenith between the mid-19th century and the 1950s. As early as 1844, palace steamers carried passengers and cargo around the Great Lakes. By 1900, fleets of relatively luxurious passenger steamers plied the waters of the lower lakes, especially the major industrial centres of Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, and Toronto.

The Erie Gauge War was a conflict between the citizens of Erie, Pennsylvania, and two railroad companies over the standardization of the track gauge between Erie and the New York border. It started on December 7, 1853, and ended on February 1, 1854.

Detroit River Light

The Detroit River Light, also known as Bar Point Shoal Light, was first established as a lightship in 1875. The current sparkplug lighthouse was built in 1885. It sits in Lake Erie, south of the mouth of the Detroit River, 1.75 nautical miles from land and about 20 nautical miles from the Ambassador Bridge in the Detroit River. It is about 0.4 nautical miles from the border with Canada, and just under 24 nautical miles from Put-in-Bay, Ohio. Its original 4th order Fresnel lens is on loan to the Michigan Maritime Museum.

Unity Island

Unity Island is an approximately 160-acre (0.65 km2) island separating the Niagara River and the Black Rock Canal, located within the city limits of Buffalo, New York. The historic island is home to two public parks and a water treatment facility. It is connected to the mainland by a two-span swing bridge.

Duluth Harbor North Pier Light

The Duluth Harbor North Pier Light is a lighthouse on the north breakwater of the Duluth Ship Canal in Duluth, Minnesota, United States.

Chicago Harbor Harbor system in Chicago

Generally, the Chicago Harbor comprises the public rivers, canals, and lakes within the territorial limits of the City of Chicago and all connecting slips, basins, piers, breakwaters, and permanent structures therein for a distance of three miles from the shore between the extended north and south lines of the city. The greater Chicago Harbor includes portions of the Chicago River, the Calumet River, the Ogden Canal, the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, Lake Calumet, and Lake Michigan.

The City of Springfield, Massachusetts has two official symbols, and is also often represented by depictions of the Municipal Group as a de facto emblem of its government.

Erie Basin Marina Municipal inland harbor in Buffalo, NY

The Erie Basin Marina is a municipal inland harbor in Buffalo, New York. The marina is primarily for residential usage, containing a large array of boat docks, gardens, and a public observatory overlooking the city and waterfront. The marina's harbor discharges into the Niagara River and Lake Erie.

Seal of Cincinnati

The seal of Cincinnati is the official insignia of the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, in the United States. Adopted in 1819, the seal incorporates scales, a sword, and a caduceus. The seal is featured prominently in the flag of Cincinnati and the insignia of city agencies and institutions.

Flag of Columbus, Ohio Official flag of the capital of Ohio

The flag of Columbus is the official municipal flag of Columbus, Ohio. Its current design is a yellow, white, red vertical triband with the city seal on a blue field. Officially, the flag was adopted in 1929, although it is unknown if the flag was ever flown when it was first adopted.

References