Rochester Row

Welcome!

Welcome to Rochester Row’s website. It’s something we’ve wanted to have for years, and now, here it is.

As you can see, there can be many different kinds of information with links to what’s going on at Rochester Row, with our neighboring western New York state societies and with Sherlockian societies in the U.S and around the world; Sherlockian conferences; websites and other reference materials; movie and TV reviews;  a history of Rochester Row; Osher Sherlock courses; and much more.

The origins of Rochester Row Sherlock Society are easier to remember than to date. Many years ago, David White, a philosopher, and Gerry Wildenberg, a mathematician, took long walks on Fridays and grilled each other on the canon. They also argued the truth of the canon. Gerry would point to inaccuracies and contradictions to prove the canon a work of fiction, and David would patiently point out that the inaccuracies and contradictions – which are acknowledged in the canon so that, without them, the canon could not be true – were necessary to protect the identity of Holmes’ clients. When David began teaching at Writers & Books, a local community school, his first course was on Moby-Dick, but he soon turned to the Sherlock Holmes films. When Nick DiChario and Steve Huff, both professional writers, had time to spare from their work at Writers & Books, they would often cross the street and enter a popular biker bar, The Atlantic Tavern (60 Atlantic Ave), now closed. There they encountered a group calling itself the Baker Street Bikers and Babes. Or so they say. We should remember that both these guys make their living writing fiction. Jack Bradigan Spula, then a writer for City \Paper; Bob Zack, a student at Fisher; and Tim Madgan, who was to write “What Was Sherlock Holmes’ Alma Mater? Elementary: St John Fisher College,” were regulars at the Atlantic and kept Suzie busy serving drinks. Tim introduced a degree of order and propriety based on his Buffalo experience, but it was really Lewis Neisner who started Rochester Row. Remember that the word “Rochester” occurs only once in the Canon.