Love Canal is a neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York, infamous for a hazardous waste disaster that first gained national attention in the late 1970s. Named after William T. Love, the entrepreneur who began developing the area in the 1890s, Love Canal was purchased by Hooker Chemical and Plastics Corporation in 1942. Between 1942 and 1953 Hooker Chemical disposed of about 22,000 tons of mixed chemical wastes into the Love Canal area. In 1953, Hooker Chemical sold the land to the Niagara Falls School Board for $1.00. In 1955, the 99th Street Elementary School was constructed on Love Canal property, and the area quickly became a blue collar, suburban neighborhood, home to hundreds of unsuspecting families.

In 1976, the Niagara Gazette reported that toxic materials were seeping into residents' basements, and there was a rise in reports of illnesses and injuries to human, animal, and plant life. In 1978, the New York Department of Health Commissioner declared Love Canal to be a health emergency. With approval of emergency funds by President Jimmy Carter, New York State (eventually) evacuated 238 families, and was responsible for remediating the site. During this time, homeowner Lois Gibbs, Dr. Beverly Paigen, and Sister Margeen Hoffmann rose to prominence as advocates for Love Canal residents, fighting for information on the health impact, and fighting for evacuation.

For more information on Love Canal, see the Niagara Gazette Love Canal Chronology and Love Canal Background Information.

Use the following resources to supplement your primary source research.

• Love Canal guide
  • Includes a comprehensive timeline of Love Canal events, as well as a list of archival collections
• Love Canal website
  • Love Canal Images database
  • Niagara Gazette newspaper clippings
  • Ecumenical Task Force of the Niagara Frontier reports and testimonies
• UB Spectrum (1955-1979) via NYS Historic Newspapers
  • Full-text searchable database, allowing you browse issues of the Spectrum, 1955-1979
  • Navigate to the search bar to conduct an advanced search
• Finding Aids database
  • Navigate to the link to conduct a search for a subject or topic to reveal relevant collections in the University Archives
  • If you see the description of an item you would like to view, contact lib-archives@buffalo.edu