Tent City

Years ago, back when I drove Transit-bus, I patronized a funky store in Rochester called “Tent City.”
It was in one of the many huge factory-buildings that lined the right-of-way of the original Erie Canal. Without “Tent City” it would have been derelict.
The Erie Canal used to go right through Rochester; southeast to northwest. In fact, it crossed the Genesee River with a giant aqueduct. Linda’s long-time employer, Lawyers Co-op, was in the “Aqueduct Building” next to that aqueduct.
But eventually the canal was rerouted south of the city. The city canal right-of-way was abandoned, and became the City Subway, essentially a little-used trolley-line, partly underground. Some of that became the Eastern Expressway.
I’m sure the Erie was rebuilt many times. Apparently the first canal had a draft of only four feet. Frequently it was dug deeper and widened.
The final iteration, the State Barge Canal, skirted Rochester to the south, and can handle tug-boats. I think it has a draft of 18 or more feet.
It crosses the Genesee River “at grade,” so it uses river water. It gets drained before winter, and refilled before the boating-season.
Rochester used to be the “Flour City.” It was at the northern end of the huge Genesee River Valley, the first “breadbasket of the nation.” Grain was grown in the Genesee Valley and shipped to Rochester via a small feeder-canal called the “Genesee Valley Canal.”
Houghton was a canal-town along that canal at first: “Jockey-Street.” People used to race their horses up the main drag. The reason Willard J. Houghton moved in was to clean up the town: drinking, and gambling, and women-of-ill-repute.
That canal is long-gone — although much of the trench remains, as do the locks. A lot of the towpath was converted to a railroad, eventually bought by Pennsy. That railroad still existed when I matriculated at Houghton (I saw a black Pennsy RS3 on it once), but it was soon abandoned.
Many flour-mills set up in Rochester at first. They milled the harvest of the Genesee Valley, and shipped it east on the Erie Canal.
Many factories set up along the canal too — including the building “Tent City” was in.
There were plenty of abandoned factories in Rochester. One became “Fabrics and Findings,” a huge outlet of sewing supplies known all over the northeast. We have patronized “Fabrics and Findings.” The tank-bag harness for the mighty Cow was from “Fabrics and Findings,” as were the plastic clips.
Another became “Village Gate Square,” an assemblage of funky-shops that supposedly competes with suburban malls.
I visited “Village Gate” a few times. What I remember is long, dark, dank, dusty hallways connecting small shops far apart.
It was barely surviving and unheated. Not many shops had been rented. Not much traffic either. Parking was scattershot.
“Tent City” was a large factory with five floors. It was very rudimentary — just the freight-elevator and an I-beam outside that accessed gaping openings on each floor that had been covered over with corrugated steel. Displays were always a picked-over jumble.
The entire western wall was sprayed over with red oxide, including windows and brick. Five stories of red disarray.
Parking was minimal — maybe 20 spaces — which was okay, since most patrons were welfare-cases who had come by bus. (It was on a bus-line — there was a stop out front.)
To get to each floor you had to climb a rickety wooden staircase, which I guess was also the inside fire-escape.
I bought my one-person motorbike camper-tent at Tent City. The tents were all set up on the top floor. I remember the salesman being embarrassed to take me up there in the freight-elevator.
Tent City opened a newly-constructed, smaller store-front across the street. Apparently they were so successful in the old building they could afford it.
I haven’t been to Tent City since buying that tent.