East Lovejoy, Buffalo, New York

East Lovejoy is a neighborhood in Buffalo, NY. It is located on the East Side of Buffalo, and is part of the bigger Lovejoy area. The councilman of the area is Richard Fontana.

Businesses

There are many businesses in Lovejoy, East Lovejoy Street being the main business street. E. Lovejoy Street is home to four pizza parlors, Eats and Treats Cafe, numerous bars, Petrucci's Dry Cleaning, Wilson Farms, Rite Aid, HSBC bank, and other personal businesses. There are also two museums, the Volunteer Firefighter Museum and the Iron Island Museum.

Ethnicity

The main group of ethnicity in Lovejoy are Italian Americans. Many Italian immigrants came to Lovejoy after immigrating to Buffalo. Italian Americans are not the only group in Lovejoy, Polish Americans and German Americans take the next two slots, however there are many other ethnicities in the area, 75% European-Americans. 10% each African-Americans and Latino-Americans, and 5% Asian-Americans

Schools

PS #43 is the primary school in the East Lovejoy area and many living in the area attend. It has architectural and significant history. Started in 1831 by Joseph Churchyard, the man who owned the land, the school created an annex on East Lovejoy and Benzinger Streets. This school is the current school #43. Built to accommodate 600 German children living in the area, the school had 49 classrooms, two gymnasiums, a cafeteria, and other features. In 1926, the amount of students attending was 1,662. Recently, the school underwent a 56 million dollar construction project that created another building connected to the old one, in place of the old parking lot. PS 43 is one of the Buffalo Public Schools.

Another school that was located in Lovejoy before its close in 2009, is St. Agnes. It did not have enough money to pay for the school and thus closed down. It was in Lovejoy for over 100 years. It opened in the 1800s.

Churches

There are many churches in East Lovejoy, although many of the Catholic churches underwent closures. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo decided to close 2 of the churches due to economic issues, and rename the church they kept open, as well as getting a new pastor. The three churches, Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Agnes, and Visitation were closed, and the Saint Francis building is used under the new name Saint Kathrine Drexel with pastor Rev. James M. Monaco. There are many other non-Catholic churches, for example, the Evangelical Baptist Church, located on Longnecker and Ludington Streets, Immanual Evangelical Lutheran located on Lovejoy and SS. Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox church on Benzinger. The Trinity UCC closed in 2010 because of lack of parishioners. The Old German Evangelical Church built in 1883 under the name Trinity UCC on Gold St. has been purchased by Spirit of Truth Urban Ministry in 2010. It is now a Apostolic Church lead by Pastor Al Robinson.

Parks

There are many parks in the Lovejoy area, including Hennipin Park, the main and largest park including a recently redone community center, Davey Park, and Moreland Field.

Iron Island

Iron Island is a popular nickname of Lovejoy, due to the fact it is entirely, or almost entirely, surrounded by train tracks (Tracks run along William Street, Broadway, many go through the Buffalo Central Terminal, and across William Street). The area also has a CSX building located on N. Ogden Street.

Iron Island Museum

The museum is located on East Lovejoy Street between Greene Street and Baily Ave. This building, which used to be Lovejoy Methodist and then a funeral home, houses artifacts and historical stories and aspects of East Lovejoy. This following year, the Iron Island Museum was featured on Ghost Hunters, along with the Buffalo Central Terminal when they were in Buffalo. The museum is allegedly haunted and people can now spend the night in the "haunted" museum.

Notable people

• Carl Paladino, developer, Republican gubernatorial candidate in the 2010 New York State election, defeated by Andrew Cuomo. Originally from Lovejoy, he later relocated to South Buffalo.