TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- C.W. Whalen & Sons in Troy was added to the New York State Historic Business Preservation Registry on Monday. At nearly 150 years old, it is one of the oldest family-owned and operated businesses in Troy.

C.W. Whalen & Sons was founded in 1876 -- the same year that Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone -- by Cornelius Walter Whalen and his wife. Whalen built awning frames using his prior blacksmithing experience and his wife sewed covers for them.

Later, with the help of Whalen's brother, the husband-wife duo expanded the business to better serve the surrounding community. The business went through several name changes throughout the decades, including Troy Awning Works and Whalen Troy Awning Works.

During the fourth generation of C.W. Whalen & Sons, led by

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