LIFE WELL LIVED

World-class attractions and four distinct seasons offer work-life balance

With lakes, rivers, foothills, forests and four distinct seasons, residents of Chautauqua County have ample occasion to play outdoors and indoors. Opportunities abound for hardy sports enthusiasts to hit the lakes, slopes, and trails, and for art, history, and culture fans to visit theaters, museums, and resorts. With a thriving agricultural industry that supports farmers markets, a wine trail, breweries, and distilleries, residents and visitors alike enjoy the local food and craft beverage scene.

The county’s rolling hills, lakes, forests, and rivers support resorts and golf courses, exceptional fishing, water sports, parks, and hundreds of miles of hiking, biking, and equestrian trails. In the winter, lake effect snow and the Allegheny foothills provide excellent conditions for downhill and cross-country skiing, snowboarding, and snowmobiling.

LIFE WELLLived

The county’s landscape is one of its greatest assets with an elevation that ranges from 570 feet along Lake Erie to 2,180 feet along the Chautauqua Ridge. Here you will find diverse microclimates, bird migration routes, myriad trails through forests and meadows, and lots of water including tributary streams, Western New York’s largest inland lake, and access to the Great Lakes along Lake Erie.

Lived

Historically Significant

Since the early days of its organization in 1808, Chautauqua County has been at the crossroads of history in the arts, education, industry, and innovation. It is the birthplace of Lucille Ball, Roger Tory Peterson, Robert H. Jackson, and innovations such as the Chautauqua Movement, Welch’s first grape juice plant, and the iconic Crescent wrench.

A Year-Round Destination

Chautauqua County is renowned for several attractions — Chautauqua Institution, the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Museum, the National Comedy Center, Chautauqua Lake, fly-fishing in Lake Erie’s tributary streams, and lake effect

snow country to name a few. Residents and second homeowners understand that while summer is high season for tourists, every month offers new events, festivals, and places to explore.

Four Seasons of Play

• Three state parks (Midway, Long Point, and Lake Erie), and five county parks. • Hundreds of miles of overland trails, water trails, and Rails-to-Trails for walkers, hikers, cyclists, canoeists, horseback riders, and snowmobilers. • 17,000+ acres of state forest land, and 900 acres of county forest land. • Hundreds of miles of designated on-road bike routes. • Excellent fishing and hunting opportunities.

100,000+

VISITORS PER SUMMER

come to Chautauqua Institution

Chautauqua Institution

A unique and charming, Victorian campus-like village founded in 1874, Chautauqua Institution is a designated National Historic Landmark and a National Historic District located along the shores of Chautauqua Lake. Each week during the nine-week summer program season, approximately 7,500 people are in residence on any given day to attend popular evening entertainment, daily lectures, and workshops that explore important religious, social, and popular political issues of our time.

National Comedy Center

The story of comedy lives in Jamestown with the opening of the new National Comedy Center. Condé Nast Traveler called it “one of the best museums in the country.” As a nonprofit cultural institution, the museum celebrates comedy’s great minds and unique voices with exclusive collections and more than 50 immersive exhibits presented with cutting-edge technology.

Naturally Diverse

From a low lying plain along Lake Erie climbing an escarpment to the Allegheny Plateau, Chautauqua County’s change in elevation and landscape provide myriad agricultural

and recreational opportunities. Part of the Eastern Continental Divide, it is connected by watersheds to both the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Gulf of Mexico. Several areas of the county are also significant stopover points for migratory birds.

Lake Erie

Chautauqua County follows the eastern Lake Erie shoreline for approximately 50 miles, offering access to beautiful sandy beaches, fishing, boating, and swimming as well as the perfect vantage for amazing sunsets. Tributary streams that feed Lake Erie are renowned for trout fishing.

PANAMA ROCKS SCENIC PARK

SUNSET BAY, LAKE ERIE

5

LAKES WITH 50 MILES OF LAKE ERIE SHORELINE

Trails & Parks

A Unique and adventurous place to live. Chautauqua County boasts a diversity of trails and scenic parks for hiking, mountain biking, equestrian riding, and birding. Groomed trails are maintained for cross country skiing, snowmobiling, and winter fat biking. Chautauqua County has the most miles of groomed singletrack fat bike trails in all of New York State. Two overland trails offer visitors scenic views and paths through reforestation areas. A connecting Rails-to-Trails system provides an additional 24.3 miles of abandoned rail corridors winding through scenic woodlands, wetlands, flowering meadows, and villages. In addition to numerous navigable lakes and streams, there are two maintained 25 mile plus flatwater trails to explore in Chautauqua County! Follow #LiveCHQ.

Chautauqua Lake

Western New York’s largest inland lake and the county’s namesake, Chautauqua Lake stretches 18 miles from Mayville to Jamestown. It is well-known for bass and musky fishing, and for sailing and boating. Historically, summer cottage enclaves dotted much of the shoreline. Today, many fortunate residents live along the lakeshore year-round.

450

MILES OF GROOMED SNOWMOBILE TRAILS

Historically Significant

Chautauqua County’s unique character owes much to its Victorian heritage, to artisan immigrants who built furniture and founded tool and die shops, and to the sons and daughters who bring international recognition to

its little towns. The historic McClurg Museum, the D.R. Barker Museum, and the Governor Fenton History Center, as well as historic lighthouses offer exhibits, libraries, and information that tell the stories of Chautauqua’s past.

2HISTORIC LIGHTHOUSES

The first lighthouse ever to be lighted by natural gas (1829) still stands at Barcelona Harbor on Lake Erie.

Roger Tory Peterson

Prompted by a seventh-grade teacher, a young boy from Jamestown joined a Junior Audubon Club, fell in love with birds, and grew up to become one of the world’s preeminent naturalists. As an artist and photographer, Roger Tory Peterson authored more than 50 field guides to plants and animals from North America and around the world. In 1984, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History was founded in his hometown to preserve his lifetime body of work and to educate new generations of naturalists.

Robert H. Jackson Center

The mission of the Robert H. Jackson Center is to serve as a forum for education on and discussion of law and justice issues, as guided by the life and work of Robert H. Jackson, US Supreme Court Justice and Chief US Prosecutor at Nuremberg.

The Jackson Center uses its beautiful historic mansion in Jamestown to host educational programs, exhibits, and seminars to advance its mission. ‘‘ One of the things I really enjoy about living here are the people; there is a helpfulness, pride, and a can-do attitude here that contributes to this community’s ability to thrive. When I moved here, someone told me that if I’m ever bored, it’s my own fault, because I’m not paying attention to the many things to do. The variety of activities and opportunities are astounding.

Kristan McMahon

PRESIDENT, ROBERT H. JACKSON CENTER

President since 2019, she relocated to Chautauqua County from northern Virginia to take on this role. She is a former principle with Vetted Solutions, an executive search firm and practicing attorney in Washington D.C.

Marion Beckerink

1,232

FANS Lucille Ball

Born in Jamestown on August 6, 1911, Lucille Desiree Ball became one of the most recognized faces in the world. An actress and comedian, she was the first woman to head a major Hollywood studio, Desilu, which produced — among its many shows — “I Love Lucy”, Star Trek, Our Miss Brooks, Mission Impossible, The Untouchables, The Andy Griffith Show, My Favorite Martian, and The Dick Van Dyke Show. Her life story and that of her first husband, Desi Arnaz, can be found at the Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum in Jamestown.