Chautauqua Children's Safety Village

The Chautauqua Children's Safety Village is a tiny town created to teach children about fire safety and traffic safety is a mock village set to a child's scale.  The Safety Village offers educational programming and is a fantastic location for birthday parties.

Location and Contact Information:

2695 Route 394, Ashville, NY 14710
(716) 338 - 0171
Website: http://www.ccsev.org/

Educational Programming:

The Safety Village has fantastic, age appropriate educational programs for children. Fire safety, lead prevention, and learning about poisons in the home are covered during a typical program. The fire safety program includes a demonstration using a dollhouse. The dollhouse is able to spark and give off "smoke," and dolls are used to show children how a family should escape a house in the event of a real fire. Children practice dialing 911 on a large chalkboard, and then repeat the practice using pretend cell phones.

Practicing 911

The safety training continues in a real-life mock-up of a kitchen and bedroom. Children learn to identify items that are "hot" and are taught to report "hot" items to adults. The bedroom contains three exit points and is filled with "smoke" while children practice rolling off the bed, crawling to the door, and exiting the bedroom. One door in the bedroom is heated, and children are taught to place the back of their hand to the door to determine if it is "hot." They are taught to avoid hot doors. Older children are taught how to climb out the window using an emergency ladder.

Is it hot, or is it not?

Concepts such as "stop, drop, and roll" are practiced and a member of the Safety Village staff dresses up as a firefighter to show children what a firefighter looks like in full gear. The children also listen to a simulated 911 call and participate with dialogue.

The poison control and lead prevention program allows children to learn about lead paint, learn that some items may look like food but are actually cleaners or medication (adults are given "Mr. Yuck" stickers to place on items are are reminded to keep cleaners in child-proof cabinets).

Lysol and apple juice look the same to a child

Traffic safety is also addressed and children are given a demonstration of driver blind spots and told to "pocket up" (put a hand in their parent's back pocket) or hold an adult's hand when crossing parking lots.

Learning about crosswalks

Birthday Parties:

The village may be rented out for birthday parties. A birthday party includes the use of a party room, a train ride on the Safety Village Express, and a drive around the town in miniature cars.

Driving around the town!

Scavenger (or "treasure") hunts are a great party game in the village, and pinatas may be hung from the picnic building's ceiling.

Birthday scavenger hunt 

Pinata time!

Birthday parties end with a ride on the Safety Village Express, a miniature "train" that goes around the village.

The Safety Village Express

Seasonal Events:

Easter egg hunts and Halloween trick-or-treating events are held every year at the Children's Safety Village. Both require a very small fee (usually about $5 per child), which helps support the Safety Village's programs. The trick-or-treating event allows children to go from building to building and get candy in a safe environment. The Easter egg hunt is divided by age and is a fun event every year.

Easter egg hunt in the village 

Trick-or-treating in the village 

A fun, and safe, Halloween event!

Penn Dixie: Fossil Hunting

Penn Dixie is located in Hamburg, New York - a relatively short drive from the Chautauqua area. This fossil digging site has an enormous amount of Devonian era fossils. This area was once used by the Penn Dixie cement company, as the Windom shale was used to make cement. 9-10 feet of shale was removed in the 1960's, leaving many fossils exposed.

Visitors to Penn Dixie are welcome to unearth or chip out their own fossils, and may take home everything they find. The site does request that large or rare fossils be photographed.

Cost of Admission:

In 2012, the cost of admission is:

Adults: $7
Children: $6
Infants under the age of 2: Free

Penn Dixie Location:


Penn Dixie's official address is:

4050 North Street
Blasdell, New York 14219


This address does not typically work on a GPS unit. Try using Hamburg as the city location, or simply follow the directions below:


From the Jamestown or Chautauqua area, drive East toward Buffalo on the I-90. Exit at Milestrip Road (toll) and turn right onto Milestrip Road. Turn left at the first traffic light onto South Park Avenue. Take South Park Avenue about a mile and a half and turn right onto Big Tree Road. Cross over the railroad tracks and turn right onto Bristol Road. Take Bristol Road until it ends, and turn left on North Street. The Penn Dixie entrance is straight ahead.


Note that the Penn Dixie site is nestled into a neighborhood - it is not visible from any of the major roads.

What to Bring:


Buckets containing safety glasses, hammers, and chisels are available to rent ($5). The website says to bring garden tools or claws, but we found the most useful item was a small hammer. Stand the rocks up on edge and hit the rock until it splits - the fossils are often buried inside.


Bring a bucket or sturdy bag to carry your fossils. Sunscreen is vital in the summer, as the sun reflects off the rocks. Bring plenty of water for hot days, and eye protection if using a chisel (the rocks splinter and fly when chipping out fossils).


Amenities:


Penn Dixie is accessible to wheelchairs and strollers, with over 4,000 feet of paved trails. There are portable toilets available. There are no sinks or drinking fountains.


What Will I Find?


The fossils at Penn Dixie are all marine fossils, as this area of Western NY was submerged by a shallow sea near the equator 380 million years ago. Coral, shells, trilobites, fish scales, sea lilies, and more can be found in the rocks.

Ancient Coral Fossils found at Penn Dixie

Jakes Rocks

Located in Warren County, Pennsyvania, Jakes Rocks is a beautiful hiking area located on a plateau overlooking the Kinzua Dam.

The hiking trail at Jakes Rocks is paved with asphalt, and many signs warn hikers to stay on the trail due to sharp drop-offs and cliffs. The trail makes a loop around impressive quartz-conglomerate boulders, which were left by receding glaciers.

Directions to Jakes Rocks:

From the Kinzua Dam visitor's center in Warren, PA, take Rte. 59 past the dam. Turn right on Longhouse Scenic Drive (watch for cyclists who frequently ride on this road). Turn right onto Forest Road 492, and turn right again at the stop sign. Bear right at the triangular intersection and continue on to the second parking area. The trailhead is on the right.

Amenities:

• Picnic Area
• Pit toilets
• Hiking trails
• Scenic overlooks

Jakes Rocks is best visited in the spring, summer, or fall seasons. Remember to watch young children carefully to ensure they stay on the trail. There is no cost to enter Jakes Rocks, and the views are spectacular over the Allegheny River. We often combine this trip with a trip to the Kinzua Dam.

Kinzua Dam

Kinzua Dam is a fun, educational place to visit with children. Located in Warren, Pennsylvania, the dam is only a short distance from Jamestown, NY. The dam has abundant wildlife, several hiking trails, a local waterfall, and a visitor's center.

Kinzua Dam Address:


Kinzua Rd, Mead Twp, PA 16365
(814) 726-0661

Directions to Kinzua Dam from Jamestown, NY


From downtown Jamestown, go south on Main St. (Rte. 60) and turn left on Foote Avenue. Take Foote Avenue/Rte 60 Arterial Highway for approximately four miles to US-62 S. Turn right on US-62 S: this highway will take you into Warren, Pennsylvania. Stay on US-62 S for about 15 miles. Turn right onto 4th Avenue in Warren, PA and then make a slight left onto Crescent Rd/Crescent Park. Follow Crescent Park and take the second left to US-6 E. Make a slight left onto Kinzua Road/PA-59 and follow this road for approximately 5 miles. The visitor center will be to the left of the road, about 1/4 mile ahead of the dam.

Kinzua Dam Amenities

• Visitor's Center, open seasonally (closed in winter and early Spring).
• Nature Trail
• Hiking Trails
• Playground

The Kinzua Dam playground is simple, but fun for small children. The playground is located next to the visitor's center and may be used year-round.

Take note that the visitor's center is closed in the winter and early Spring, which means there are no available restrooms during this time of year. The visitor's center features bathrooms and information about the dam in the summer months.

The Kinzua Dam nature trail is short and features beautiful trees and rocks, with some trees actually growing around the giant boulders. My two young sons (ages six and four) spent a lot of time climbing over the rocks and tree roots. There are also letterboxes hidden in the local area, for families who enjoy that activity. 

Be sure to take the short trail to the stream bed, as there is a lot of wildlife down by the river. My boys enjoyed skipping stones and watching the rush of water from the dam. Obey all safety signs and do not go past the marked boundaries, as the river may suddenly rise if the dam spillways are opened.

This area is a fantastic place to stop for a picnic lunch and a short hike. Bald eagles are often spotted in the area on migratory flights and you are sure to see birds, dragonflies, and other wildlife during most of the year. We often make day trips to the dam and nearby Jake's Rocks and Rimrock, which are Pennsylvania state parks.

Viewing the dam from an observation deck. 

Kinzua Dam as viewed from an overview at Jake's Rocks.