Blizzard of 2022 experiences being gathered for Buffalo History Museum collection

The collection, culled from online submissions, documents Western New Yorkers’ experiences during the once-in-a-generation weather event and preserves them for future generations to peruse and learn from. It was patterned after the documentation of another recent historic event, according to Brian Hayden, director of communications and community engagement for the museum.

“I would say this has really been an effort of the last several years. There was a similar collecting initiative launched during the Covid-19 pandemic where we tried to capture oral histories or experiences or memories from the community,” said Hayden.

“So when the Blizzard of 2022 hit last year, we just kind of knew that this event was so extraordinary that we wanted to create a similar collecting initiative where we gathered photos and videos, and audio testimonials and, in some cases, objects that represent some piece of the story of that blizzard and our community’s response to it,” he added.

The initiative began late in January, about a month after the blizzard, which occurred on Dec. 23 and 24. Since then, Hayden said, the museum has received more than 100 donations from the community at large, the majority of which are photos. The collection also includes a handful of videos of the blizzard that were submitted to the museum, as well as a couple of object donations, one of which came from County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz. 

“There was a U.S. flag that was flying outside the emergency operations center in Cheektowaga during the blizzard and, I believe, it was somewhat damaged, but he recently stopped by our resource center on Forest Avenue to donate that. It hasn’t been formally accessioned yet, but it’s on its way to becoming part of the collection,” Hayden said.

Another object was provided by a local candlemaker who created…