Utica, NY, in its heyday was quite the beautiful city. If you look past the peeling paint, old wood, and overgrown shrubs, you can see the grand old dames still shining through. 

I snapped these photos when I was on Genesee Street, near the Utica Public Library and Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute and Museum. 





The house style is Italianate, a very popular architectural design in the 1880s, when Utica had risen to its highest point in prosperity.



I don't think these houses are very snow-friendly. They have flat roofs. New York State gets a lot of rain and heavy snow, so I assume that these houses require an unusual amount of maintenance.



This is the base to the large column outside the Utica Public Library. I don't know why I like it, perhaps because it is so round and smooth and perfect. And OLD and HUGE!



It's a shame that so many of Utica's houses are run down. These houses here in Genesee Street are not too bad, but houses on Eagle and Park and South are deplorable. There have been various small-scale urban renewal projects from time to time; where applied, these projects really make a difference. But like the effectiveness of fat burners, you have the maintain the exercise to get continuous benefit. I suppose all cities have their run-down areas, but it's a shame that Utica has so many. Nonetheless, the city is wealthy with history and heritage! I'll have more posts about our recent explorations of this city in Central NY.