Buffalo Creek was made a Port of Entry in 1805 by President Thomas Jefferson.

[2] On March 11, 1811, President James Madison issued a proclamation removing the port of entry for the Buffalo district to Black Rock (which was not a part of Buffalo at the time),[a] in pursuance of an act of Congress dated March 2, 1811, which provided that "the office of the Collector of Customs for the District of Buffaloe Creek shall be kept at such place or places in the town of Buffalo as President of the United States shall designate.

"[2][4] In 1817, Forward, as Collector of the Port, was authorized by the Treasury Department to purchase a site for a light house.

Forward negotiated with Joseph Ellicott, agent of the Holland Land Company, to purchase the property near the outlet of the Buffalo Creek for $350.

[5] In August 1965, it was announced that the Buffalo Customs District was enlarged under President Lyndon B. Johnson's national reorganization plan to include the Toronto Airport and the ports of Buffalo and Niagara Falls.