The Sodus Bay Lighthouse combines a well-documented construction history with its current role as a museum. The present lighthouse was completed on June 30, 1871, and is equipped with a fourth-order Fresnel lens. In 1977, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the lighthouse serves as a maritime museum; the Sodus Bay Historical Society operates and maintains it. This brings the building’s historical significance and its present-day role as a museum into the same view.
Museums offering different perspectives
The Alling Coverlet Museum is dedicated to handwoven coverlets and houses the largest collection of its kind in the United States. The pieces on display were made between 1820 and 1880. The museum also includes a quilt room, looms, spinning wheels, and weaving tools. The coverlets’ timeframe and the equipment on display bring the subject to life through both the textiles and the weaving process.
A different historical perspective can be found at the Erie Canal Depot. It is housed in a historic tenant house dating from the 1830s and displays original travel and trade artifacts, including historic tools and clothing from bygone eras. The Museum of Wayne County History is housed in a former sheriff’s residence that also served as the county jail; the jail operated from 1856 to 1960. The museum spans three exhibition levels and features jail cells, as well as military, trade, women’s, and children’s rooms, a weaving room, and a kitchen from the 1850s. Guided tours take visitors through all three museum levels and the Carriage House.
Shorelines, routes, and wetlands
Wayne County lies on the south shore of Lake Ontario between Rochester and Syracuse, in the northern Finger Lakes region of New York. The Seaway Trail is a National Scenic Byway that passes through the county. The historic Erie Canal also runs through Wayne County. The road and canal offer distinct historical and scenic points of reference for the region.
At the Montezuma Audubon Center, the focus shifts to the landscape. The center is part of a 50,000-acre landscape of wetlands and adjoining upland areas. The trails at the center run through the Montezuma Wetlands Complex; there is also an observation platform for wildlife viewing. This brings both the scale of the landscape and the trails through the wetland complex into view. The platform adds a dedicated place for wildlife viewing to these nature-focused features.
Local food and apple tastings
The Lyons Farmers' Market offers locally grown and homemade foods: fresh fruit and vegetables, meat and poultry, sourdough bread and baked goods, eggs, jams, honey, coffee, and hot breakfast sandwiches. Another apple-focused event is the annual Apple Tasting Tour in Wayne County. Participating stops offer apple tastings, fresh apple cider, and apple specialties. If you’d like to include the tour in your plans, check the event dates in advance.
Discover more destinations: Ontario, Williamson, Sodus, Madison, Yates County, Tioga County, Livingston County, Otsego.
For the overview of the wider region: New York.
