A natural sand beach within city limits opens onto Lake Ontario and offers swimming, fishing, boating, and, yes, a playground. Even more telling, Rochester is where the National Museum of Play, also known as “the Strong,” interprets and exhibits more than two hundred years of toy history.
The museum’s namesake, benefactress, and inspiration are one and the same, Margaret Woodbury Strong. An avid collector of dolls, Strong was heiress to a wealthy family that wisely got out of the buggy-whip business and invested early in Eastman Kodak. As the camera and film company’s earnings rose, so did the family fortune.
Read Full Article »