Where Delaware Avenue and West Ferry Street meet, there once stood a historic home. At 1168 Delaware Avenue, where a Canisius High School parking lot and the Montante Academic Wing now stand, was the Milburn House. This home was built in 1861 and was purchased by John G. Milburn in 1888. Milburn was a young, wealthy lawyer who immigrated to Western New York from Newcastle-on-Tyne, England. He went on to become a very prominent social figure in Buffalo and was appointed as president of the Pan-American Exposition Company. This major World’s Fair-type event took place in Buffalo in 1901.

As the president of the Pan-American Exposition, Milburn was given the duty of hosting United States President William McKinley and his wife as they visited this major event. The McKinley’s reportedly felt right at home at the lush, yellow brick home on 1168 Delaware. Unfortunately, tragedy would strike shortly after their arrival as President McKinley was shot by an anarchist. The President would return back to the Milburn House where he received care from his medical crew. Across the street stood press tents with over 250 newsmen covering the tragic event. The largest news event in the world at the time was unfolding at the corner of Delaware and West Ferry in Buffalo.

President McKinley would succumb to his injuries eight days later. The Milburn House turned into a funeral home for the next two days as friends and family visited the President in his casket. Two years after the tragic events, the Milburn family departed for New York City after John Milburn received a partner position at a larger law firm. A fire in 1907 destroyed much of the house, including the room where President McKinley passed away. In 1919, the home was transformed into multiple affordable apartment units.

In 1948, Canisius High School purchased the eight-apartment Milburn House. The home was certainly not what it once was when John Milburn owned it at the turn of the 20th century. The fire and the renovation into a multi-apartment complex left the home in shoddy condition compared to what it once was. The home had become a complicated maze of corridors and hallways and Canisius used it as a residence for Jesuits. Visiting Jesuits often needed a guide so they would not get lost in the house's winding halls. Some have said that the walls were so thin that one could easily force his hand through them. One Jesuit even claimed that he knew of a special brick that would cause the whole house to collapse if it were to be removed. What was once a prominent home had become a dilapidated building. 

Canisius demolished the Milburn House in 1957. The school received a generous donation from the Frauenheim brothers which allowed them to construct a new Jesuit residence on campus. This faculty residence, known as Frauenheim Hall,  included a much greater number of living spaces and a chapel. However, this building would also eventually be demolished to make way for the Kennedy Field House.

Today, the only thing left marking the site of the former Milburn House is a plaque that sits on the edge of the parking lot. This small blue metal plaque was placed there by the Buffalo Historical Society and notes the death of the President in the former house location on September 14, 1901. 118 years ago, this site marked the tragic end for a United States President and was the center of the news world for a period of time. The parking lot that the Canisius faculty and students depart after every school day carries much more historical significance than what appears to the naked eye.