What to See and Do in Westfield, New York

Westfield New York is located in Chautauqua county, named for the Chautauqua creek which empties out into Lake Erie. Westfield New York is located less than one hour from Erie Pennsylvania, and is set near the lake, as well as Lake Chautauqua .

Westfield is not a hotbed of activity by any means but it is a lovely town to visit, and a nice place to raise a family. There is some history to this small town of under six thousand residents. First of all, Westfield was settled in 1802 by a man named James McMahan. It was established as a town later in 1823.

In 1812, when the war was ranging the mill, the settlements main source of income and employment, was dismantled to prevent it from falling into the hands of the British. Present day, you can view the Mill outside of the public library, in the village of Westfield.

Westfield is also home of a beautiful light house, known as the Barcelona Light house. This lighthouse has the distinction of being the worlds first gas powered lighthouse.

Westfield is part of the magical Erie wine region. The climate is perfect for growing grapes due to the favorable soil conditions, which provide good natural drainage. The warm air from the lake combined with the nearby Allegheny Mountain range is a grape growers dream, as Welches discovered in 1897. When concord grapes were first grown for grape juice and wine. This region is the third largest wine producing region in the United states.

Other things of interest in Westfield include the famed Lincoln Biddell statue, which depicts a meeting between a little girl, named Grace Biddell, who wrote Abraham Lincoln a letter, telling him if he grew a beard it would greatly help his campaign for the presidency. I believe a book was written about this subject for kids called Presidency Lincolns whiskers, or something like that. The statue is beautiful and set aside the main street of Westfield.

If you appreciate and enjoy a good bottle of wine, there are several to stop at in Westfield New York. Ie highly recommend The Johnson Estate Winery. I love their 'little love drops' white Delaware wine. It is sweet, fruity, perfectly aged, and affordable. It is by far the best wine I have ever drank, and this has become my favorite wine without a doubt. A trip through Westfield is not complete without a stop here to view the Estate, the grapes growing, and the process of producing such a fine wine.

Westfield lacks the hustle and bustle of nearby Buffalo or Erie, but it makes up for the lack of activity with small town charm.