It's a Wonderful Life Bridge — Attraction in Town of Seneca Falls

"Its a Wonderful Life" is a 1946 movie. It's also a Christmas gift to the world. Producer/ director, Frank Capra grew up in Seneca Falls and was inspired by this wonderful place. We wanted to do something Christmassy so we drove to Seneca Falls before Christmas to really get in the Christmas spirit. On the bridge you will see bells tied on the rail. They are dedicated to loved ones, lost. In the movie, it was said,"Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings." Bells were manufactured, here. There is a plaque on the bridge dedicated to Antonio Varacalli, who in 1917 lost his life to save another by wading out into the freezing waters and swift currents and grabbing hold of a young woman that fell in and pushing her to another man on the shore. The young woman was saved, but Antonio Varacalli was swept away. This is the ultimate gift of one person to another and was Frank Capra's main inspiration for "It's a Wonderful Life". Seneca Falls is an Erie Canal town which manufactured many important goods that shipped out on the canal. Women worked in the factories, here. They were a strong, tight knit group. Women's Rights organizations originated, here. When the railroads came in the 1850's, the canal lost its strategic importance and manufacturers moved to other places. But this quaint town in the Finger Lakes area of New York State remains. It possesses a quiet magic you can experience for yourself. There are many things to see and do, here. Visit the museums and visitor center which has three levels dedicated to manufacturing, the canal and the knitting mill run by women and you can visit the Women's Rights Museum, also. We came to see "It's a Wonderful Life Museum, the bridge, Erie Canal and the town in full Christmas display. You may also visit craft beer houses and the local restaurants. And this is wine...

Fun, but keep your sense of fun activated since the connection between the movie and this town and bridge is tenuous at best ( movie was filmed in California). The deal with this bridge is that early in the 1900s, a good samaritan jumped off this bridge and saved someone's life, but died in the process. So, since the person who filmed "Its a Wonderful Life" was known to pass through this town (Seneca Falls) occasionally, the idea is that he knew of what happened on the bridge and incorporated it into the central theme of the movie where Clarence the angel jumps in the water to save suicidal George Baily, knowing George would forget about his troubles while saving Clarence. BTW, there are lots of bells attached to this bridge (get it?... from the movie - "every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings"). After the bridge, go over to the museum honoring the 1848 start of the women's...

I prefer to call this span the "George Bailey Bridge" as that's how I heard about it. The bridge has its own festival under the name of the name "George Bailey Bridge". The bridge shall accumulate meaning as time goes forward as a place where we contemplate our contributions to the life of those we know and those we haven't met. Adjacent to the Ludovico Sculpture Trail, the bridge makes a great place to begin a walk when one needs to think and put the world at a distance. The sculpture trail has room for more sculptures, and I am charmed that the first female mayor of Seneca Falls and the first female police officer of Seneca Falls have been honored here with sculptures. Experts might make comments on the quality of these sculptures but I'll be honest. I love their honesty and hope I'll see hundreds more installed...