The salt-whitened, snowplow-scraped roadway and endless, slightly hilly expanse of shaggy, kudzu-like vineyards on the south side of the road continue for a dozen monotonous miles between the state line and proud, hardworking Westfield (pop. 3,500), known locally as Vine City because of its large Italian American grape-growing community and its proximity to some of Chautauqua County’s finest wineries.
The tangy Concord grape was introduced to the region in 1859, but it wasn’t until 1897 that Dr. Charles Welch and his father moved to Westfield and founded the factory that led to Westfield’s long-standing nickname, the “Grape Juice Capital of the World.” Though many of the canneries have since vanished, Welch Foods still maintains a large plant and its corporate offices on N. Portage Street, on the western edge of Westfield’s compact downtown.
Westfield’s no-frills Main Diner (716/326-4351), at 40 E. Main Street in the heart of downtown, is a pleasant place to grab a cup of coffee and sandwich while watching the pickup trucks cruise past; it’s open daily 6 am–3 pm, plus evenings Thursday–Saturday. Great homemade pies. (For all you diner mavens, the building is a 1929 Ward & Dickinson, originally fabricated in neighboring Silver Creek.)
Across I-90 from Westfield along waterfront Hwy-5, Lake Erie’s Barcelona Harbor is home to the landmark Barcelona Lighthouse, which was the first lighthouse in the world to be lit by natural gas when constructed in 1830.
