The Turtle (Native American Center for the Living Arts)

Last updated
The Turtle (Native American Center for the Living Arts)
UoNL - Messana Collection - P630B H626R.L N374 - Turtle color head.jpg
head of the Turtle
The Turtle (Native American Center for the Living Arts)
General information
Address25 Rainbow Blvd, Niagara Falls, NY 14303
Coordinates 43°05′07″N79°03′46″W / 43.085263°N 79.062790°W / 43.085263; -79.062790
Year(s) built1977–1981
OpenedMay 1981
Closed1995
OwnerNiagara Falls Redevelopment
Technical details
MaterialConcrete
Floor count3
Floor area67,000 square feet (6,200 m2)
Design and construction
Architect(s)Dennis Sun Rhodes

The Turtle, also known as the Turtle Building or the Native American Center for the Living Arts, is a three-story building in Niagara Falls, New York. The building was opened in May 1981 as the headquarters for the Native American Center for the Living Arts, an organization dedicated to promoting Native American visual and performing arts. Its unique shape, with a geodesic dome roof "shell" and large porthole "eye" windows, invokes the Iroquois creation story of the earth forming on the back of a giant turtle. After closing in 1995 due to financial trouble, the building has remained vacant, with its future preservation and use in question.

Contents

Organization foundation and building construction

In May 1970, Tuscarora sculptor Wilmer "Duffy" Wilson and a group of Native Americans including Buffy Sainte-Marie founded the Native American Center for the Living Arts (NACLA) in New York City. [1] Their motivation was to promote the preservation of the visual and performing arts of Native American peoples and to encourage the development of new forms of creative expression. [1] Wilson moved the center to a storefront in Niagara Falls in 1975 which included an art gallery, handicraft shop, and museum exhibit space. [2] Support from the community inspired the idea of the construction of a permanent structure dedicated to Native American culture. [2] The center submitted a proposal to the Economic Development Administration and secured a $4.9 million grant. [2]

The shape of the building was envisioned by Wilson and his coworker, and reflects the Iroquois creation story of muskrat bringing a piece of the earth from below the water, creating the Western hemisphere on the back of a giant turtle. [2] The use of the symbolic design is emblematic of twentieth-century Native American architecture, as The Turtle joined other zoomorphic buildings such as the Cornwall Island (Ahkwesahsne Mohawk) School in Ontario. [3] The large porthole windows act as eyes which gaze toward the Upper Niagara River Rapids, while the geodesic dome roof contains a skylight in the shape of an eagle. [2] The location of the building, the closest structure to the American side of Niagara Falls, was chosen because of the proximity to tourist activity as well as the fact that the Iroquois saw the Falls as a sacred site. [2] The architect, Dennis Sun Rhodes of the Northern Arapaho, would go on to design other Indigenous centers such as the Minneapolis American Indian Center and the Piya Wiconi Building at Oglala Lakota College on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. [2] Groundbreaking ceremonies were held on the site in September 1977. [2] Inflation in the late 1970s caused the building to open a year behind schedule and about $750,000 over budget. [2] [4]

The Turtle as site of the Native American Center for the Living Arts

The Turtle opened to the public in May 1981; at the time, NACLA was the largest center for Indigenous arts in the Eastern United States. [2] It housed displays of Native artifacts and art, as well as hosting film and theatrical presentations. [5] The center sponsored craft shows and held dance performances and powwows in a large amphitheater. [4] NACLA had a library and published Turtle Quarterly, a glossy arts and current affairs magazine that was funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. [4] During its heyday, the Turtle housed a craft shop, a restaurant, gallery space, offices and meeting rooms for the community. [5]

Closure

In 1989, the organization laid off employees after state subsidies no longer covered the cost of running the building. [6] In May 1993, most of the building's power was shut off when unpaid electrical bills reached $100,000. [4]

The center formally closed in 1995, in part due to the declining manufacturing economy of the city. [5] [7] Many exhibited items were auctioned off to pay the federal tax bill. [6] The University at Buffalo offered to take over the building and operate it as a Native American cultural center, but city leaders rejected the offer because it did not include payment of the center's back taxes. [5] The city foreclosed on the building in April 1996. [5]

At the city's request, the building was purchased in 1997 for $1,000,000 by Niagara Falls Redevelopment (NFR), a real estate company owned by the Milstein family, along with development rights to much of the city. [5] [7] [6]

Preservation efforts

In 2000, NFR announced plans to develop the building into a museum with plans to apply for partnership with the Smithsonian Institution, but those plans never came to fruition. [6] In 2017, NFR requested that the city allow a variance from the downtown height limits to tear down the Turtle and build a 20-story hotel, but city officials did not grant that request. [8]

Preservation Buffalo Niagara began a campaign in the summer of 2022 to encourage the Niagara Falls City Council to approve a landmark designation for the building. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buffalo, New York</span> City in the United States

Buffalo is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the seat of Erie County. It lies in Western New York, at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, on the United States border with Canada. With a population of 278,349 according to the 2020 census, Buffalo is the 6th-largest community in New York State and the 78th largest city in the United States. Buffalo and the city of Niagara Falls together make up the two-county Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which had an estimated population of 1.2 million in 2020, making it the 49th-largest MSA in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niagara River</span> River in New York, United States and Ontario, Canada

The Niagara River is a river that flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. There are differing theories as to the origin of the river's name. According to Iroquoian scholar Bruce Trigger, Niagara is derived from the name given to a branch of the locally residing native Neutral Confederacy, who are described as being called the Niagagarega people on several late-17th-century French maps of the area. According to George R. Stewart, it comes from the name of an Iroquois town called Ongniaahra, meaning "point of land cut in two".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niagara Falls</span> Waterfalls between United States and Canada

Niagara Falls is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Falls, which straddles the international border of the two countries. It is also known as the Canadian Falls. The smaller American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls lie within the United States. Bridal Veil Falls is separated from Horseshoe Falls by Goat Island and from American Falls by Luna Island, with both islands situated in New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niagara County, New York</span> County in New York, United States

Niagara County is in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 212,666. The county seat is Lockport. The county name is from the Iroquois word Onguiaahra; meaning the strait or thunder of waters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Island, New York</span> Island town in Erie County, New York

Grand Island is an island town in Erie County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town's population was 21,389 representing an increase of 5.00% from the 2010 census figure. The town's name is derived from the French name La Grande Île; Grand Island is the largest island in the Niagara River and the third largest in New York state. The phrase La Grande Île appears on the town seal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niagara Falls, New York</span> City in New York, United States

Niagara Falls is a city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 48,671. It is adjacent to the Niagara River, across from the city of Niagara Falls, Ontario, and named after the famed Niagara Falls which they share. The city is within the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area and the Western New York region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Tonawanda, New York</span> City in New York, United States

North Tonawanda is a city in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 31,568 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is named after Tonawanda Creek, its south border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Youngstown, New York</span> Village in New York, United States

Youngstown is a village in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 1,935 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lewiston (village), New York</span> Village in New York, United States

Lewiston is a village in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 2,701 at the 2010 census. The village is named after Morgan Lewis, an early 19th-century governor of New York. It is part of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niagara Peninsula</span> Peninsula in Ontario, Canada

The Niagara Peninsula is an area of land lying between the southwestern shore of Lake Ontario and the northeastern shore of Lake Erie, in Ontario, Canada. Technically an isthmus rather than a peninsula, it stretches from the Niagara River in the east to Hamilton, Ontario, in the west. The peninsula is located in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario, and has a population of roughly 1,000,000 residents. The region directly across the Niagara River and Lake Erie in New York State is known as the Niagara Frontier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Niagara</span> United States historic place

Fort Niagara, also known as Old Fort Niagara, is a fortification originally built by New France to protect its interests in North America, specifically control of access between the Niagara River and Lake Ontario, the easternmost of the Great Lakes. The fort is on the river's eastern bank at its mouth on Lake Ontario. Youngstown, New York, later developed nearby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oneonta, New York</span> City in New York, United States

Oneonta is a city in southern Otsego County, New York, United States. It is one of the northernmost cities of Appalachia. Oneonta is home to the State University of New York at Oneonta and Hartwick College. SUNY Oneonta began as a normal school and a teacher's college in 1889, and Hartwick College moved into the city in 1928. The approximately 5,800 students from SUNY Oneonta and the approximately 1,500 students at Hartwick make up a significant percentage of the population of Oneonta. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, Oneonta had a population of 13,079. Its nickname is "City of the Hills." While the word "oneonta" is of undetermined origin, it is popularly believed to mean "place of open rocks" in the Mohawk language. This refers to a prominent geological formation known as "Table Rock" at the western end of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niagara County Community College</span> Community college in Sanborn, New York, U.S.

Niagara County Community College (NCCC) is a public community college in Sanborn, New York. Founded in 1962, NCCC is sponsored by Niagara County and offers associate degrees as part of the State University of New York system. Dual admissions programs facilitate transfer to four-year colleges upon completion of the two-year degree programs. NCCC operates the Niagara Falls Culinary Institute as a remote campus within the former Rainbow Centre Factory Outlet in downtown Niagara Falls, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Buffalo, New York</span>

Buffalo is the county seat of Erie County, and the second most populous city in the U.S. state of New York, after New York City. Originating around 1789 as a small trading community inhabited by the Neutral Nation near the mouth of Buffalo Creek, the city, then a town, grew quickly after the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825, with the city at its western terminus. Its position at the eastern end of Lake Erie strengthened the economy, based on grain milling and steel production along the southern shores and in nearby Lackawanna.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Former Niagara Falls High School</span> United States historic place

Former Niagara Falls High School is a historic high school located at Niagara Falls in Niagara County, New York, USA. It was built in 1923 and added to the existing gymnasium structure, and designed by local architect Simon Larke, who also designed the James G. Marshall House. The original structure is in the Neoclassical revival style. An addition was constructed in 1963.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Occupy Buffalo</span> American protest movement

Occupy Buffalo was a collaboration that included a peaceful protest and demonstrations which began on October 1, 2011, in Buffalo, New York, in Niagara Square, the nexus of downtown Buffalo opposite the Buffalo City Hall. It is related to the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City on September 17, and called for economic equity, accountability among politicians and ending lobbyist influence of politicians. Protesters camped overnight in Niagara Square as part of the demonstration.

Esenwein & Johnnson was an architectural firm of Buffalo, New York.

Jolene Rickard, born 1956, citizen of the Tuscarora Nation, Turtle clan, is an artist, curator and visual historian at Cornell University, specializing in indigenous peoples issues. Rickard co-curated two of the four permanent exhibitions for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of the Iroquois Confederacy</span> Indigenous peoples flag

The flag of the Iroquois Confederacy or Haudenosaunee flag is the flag used to represent the six nations of the Iroquois. It is a purple flag with four connected white squares and an eastern white pine tree in the center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lescaze House</span> House in Manhattan, New York

The Lescaze House is a four-story house at 211 East 48th Street in the East Midtown and Turtle Bay neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City. It is along the northern sidewalk of 48th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. The Lescaze House at 211 East 48th Street was designed by William Lescaze in the International Style between 1933 and 1934 as a renovation of a 19th-century brownstone townhouse. It is one of three houses in Manhattan designed by Lescaze.

References

  1. 1 2 Hauptman, Laurence M. (1988). Formulating American Indian policy in New York State, 1970 - 1986. Albany: State University of New York Press. pp. 61–62. ISBN   9780887067549 . Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Recommendation of Historic Landmark Designation: The Native American Center for the Living Arts ("The Turtle")" (PDF). Niagara Falls USA. City of Niagara Falls. 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  3. ↑ Davis, Mary B., ed. (1994). Native America in the Twentieth Century : An Encyclopedia. New York: Routledge. p. 56. ISBN   9780815325833 . Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Lack of Money Imperils Indian Cultural Center". The New York Times. 13 June 1993. p. 41. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Neville, Anne (8 February 2017). "Long-vacant Turtle building lives on in the hearts of many". Buffalo News. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Galarneau, Andrew Z. (10 December 2000). "New Life for the Turtle: Niagara Falls Redevelopment Is Looking to Turn the Long-Closed Landmark Into a First-Class Museum—Perhaps With Help from the Smithsonian Institute". Buffalo News. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 Scheer, Mark; Pfeiffer, Rick (19 January 2024). "Show of support for landmark status for Turtle". Niagara Gazette. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  8. ↑ Scheer, Mark (26 December 2023). "Preservation group ramps up 'Turtle' building landmarking effort". Lockport Union-Sun & Journal. Retrieved 27 January 2024.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.