OBSERVER Staff Report PORTLAND — A crash between a New York State Department of Transportation plow truck and tractor-trailer briefly forced the closure of the eastbound lane of Interstate 90. Firefighters and the New York State Police were called Tuesday to the interstate, between the ...

Festivals income and sponsorships in 2018 brought in a total of $296,708. The expenses to run those programs were a bit more totaling $296,895. But in the end, the Dunkirk Local Development Corp. finished in the black by $4,515 last year. Those numbers were announced during an audit of the ...

OBSERVER Staff Report SOUTH DAYTON — Residents in the Pine Valley School District have approved their proposed Capital Improvement Project on Tuesday. The unofficial result was 146 yes and 45 no. The Capital Improvement Project is designed to address important repairs, renovations and ...

Dunkirk’s champions have their rings. The state title-winning Lady Marauders girls bowling team attended their school district’s board of education meeting Tuesday to show off the bling. They received a standing ovation from board and crowd alike. “The ride after the championship was ...

OBSERVER Photos by Donnie Clement Appreciation and gratitude was shown to area veterans on Monday.

Roaring diesel engines to generate power in Block Island, R.I., were a way of life for this small community that relied on tourism to drive its economy. But the recession of 2008-09 changed the way residents south of the mainland looked at electricity. At that time, fuel prices reached some ...

Fredonia police on Monday announced an arrest in the stabbing of a female after a domestic incident on 16 Wisteria Drive. Leon R. Lidlow, 35, was charged on an arrest warrant with second-degree assault, first-degree unlawful imprisonment, and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. The ...

Doug Essek’s victory in the Fredonia mayoral race will create a vacancy on the Fredonia Board of Trustees. Essek is currently a trustee. He was elected twice to his trustee seat. In 2016, he won a one-year term of office — an unusual term that came up due to a vacancy. Essek then ...

A Veterans Day ceremony was held on Monday at the Applebee's in Dunkirk. Veterans who attended received free meals while a a 20-minute event paid tribute to those who served. Photos by Donnie Clement.

GOWANDA — On Friday hundreds of students in Gowanda Elementary School’s gymnasium gathered together to host one of the largest Veterans Day celebrations in the area. For more than a decade, Gowanda Elementary School has invited local veterans to attend a special ceremony in their honor, ...

The 1891 Fredonia Opera House announced Sunday afternoon during its 25th annual variety show that it added to its name, changed its logo and had completed restoration of an iconic piano with the assistance of a donor, who preferred to remain anonymous. The announcement came during the ...

More than 50 years ago, Dunkirk resident James Bialaszewski was serving with the U.S. Army in Vietnam. He was with a group of seven men when his group was called into action. More than a year ago, while visiting his daughter in South Carolina, he recalled the mission. His most specific ...

Editor’s note: This is part II of Fredonia native native Christof Morrissey’s reflections of the fall of the Berlin Wall. BERLIN — With two buddies from my battalion, Lieutenants Robert Lutz and Randy Taylor, I drove down to Checkpoint Charlie. A large crowd of West Berliners lined the ...

Folk singer and retired State University of New York communications professor Dan Berggren performed with his daughter Jenny Berggren at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Northern Chautauqua in Fredonia on Saturday evening. Both were in attendance for the service at the church on ...

Ciao! I have been in Italy as an exchange student for two months now. During this time, I have been to the sea, the mountains, the big city, and the small towns. In Bordighera, we bathed in the seaside sun and swam in the salty waters. We visited Fortezza (meaning fortress) del Priamar in ...

Submitted photo On Nov. 1, 2019, Nicholas Caccamise was promoted to the rank of captain in the United States Marine Corps. Capt. Caccamise currently serves as the assistant operations officer at 1st Law Enforcement Battalion, 1 Marine Expeditionary Force aboard Camp Pendleton, California. He ...

It’s soup season! Unless you’re like me and you enjoy soup year-round, of course. There’s just something about hot soup that’s been cooking all day, or if you have an instant pot, all hour, that pairs perfectly with fall weather. The kind of fall weather that’s a bit drizzly and ...

The United Way has officially launched its 2019 fundraising campaign, and took the opportunity to recognize some very special organizations and individuals making a difference in our community while doing it. The United Way Fall Celebration took place in the recently completed pavilion at ...

Are you in the holiday spirit? On Saturday at the Chautauqua County Fairgrounds a craft show to benefit the pet pantry was held. Here are some sights from the event. OBSERVER Photos by Natasha Matteliano.

Editor’s note: On Nov. 9, 1989 the spokesman for East Berlin’s Communist Party announced that citizens of the German Democratic Republic were free to cross the country’s borders. Below is an account by Fredonia native Christof Morrisey, who was there 30 years go and lives in Germany ...