Reisem does a good job of describing, in relatively few words, the history of the Erie Canal; Olenick’s architectural and scenic photographs as they were in the duo’s recent “Classic Buffalo” book, are superb. Armed with a 4-by-5 view camera and an eye for beauty, Olenick’s mastery of light, dramatic shadow, texture and saturated colors is gloriously displayed in the 270 photographs that form the heart of this volume.

–The Buffalo News, August 20, 2000

It’s hard to decide which is more gratifying: the text, which is peppered with personal histories and nuggets on canal life such as how a lock works; or the insightful photos that pay tribute to the canal towns’ architectural splendor.

–Victorian Homes, December 2000

In approaching the Erie Canal legacy, Reisem’s imagination was caught not by the idea of a book about the commerce and growth of the canal, but about the lively culture that flourished alongside it.

–City Newspaper, May 24-30, 2000 (Rochester, NY)

By focusing on architecture in cities, villages and hamlets along the Erie Canal, the Rochester team of photographer Andy Olenick and writer Richard O. Reisem have become evangelists of architectural preservation.

–Sunday Sentinel, August 13, 2000 (Rome, NY)

No other publication has attempted this broad a survey of the canal's impressive architectural legacy. Erie Canal Legacy showcases the distinguished historic architecture in all the prominent cities along the canal...
–Lift Bridge Books

Then there are the architectural whatchamacallits like the Nott Memorial (1872), a domed and multisided fireplug of a place at Union College in Schenectady that restores one's faith in the power of the off-beam to produce the lovable.
–Arnold Berke, Preservation, Nov/Dec 2000