Clifford Claverly Clifford Claverly is another tightrope walker to challenge the Niagara Gorge. He is probably best known as being the fastest tightrope walker, having completed his journey in the time of 2 minutes, 32 5/8 seconds. Most of his contemporaries had taken fifteen to twenty minutes to cross. Claverly also amazed the audiences with […]

Early travel from the American side to the Canadian side had always been a perilous undertaking and by the mid 1800’s there appeared a definite need for a sustainable method of crossing the Niagara gorge. As early as 1825 private ferry services had sprung up along the banks of the river. Usually the captain of […]

Sam Patch Sam Patch Before arriving in Niagara the young Sam Patch had already achieved a degree of notoriety by some of his previous jumps. He had performed in front of crowds in New Jersey, jumping into the Passaic Falls. When approached by local hotel proprietors he decided to take them up on their offer. […]

Captain Matthew Webb Captain Matthew Webb was born in England in 1848, one of seven children and went to sea at an early age. In 1875 he accomplished the feat of being the first person to swim the English Channel from Dover to Calais, a distance of twenty-five miles. He had also been awarded a […]

Carlisle Graham On Sunday, July 11th, 1886 Graham Carlisle, a barrel maker from Philadelphia became the first person ever to shoot the Great Gorge Rapids in a barrel. Capt. Joel Robinson had already piloted the Maid of the Mist from it’s landing below the Horseshoe Falls to Queenston in 1861. Carlisle Graham would make his […]

Annie Taylor On October 24th, 1901 Annie Taylor became the first person and the first woman to go over the falls in a barrel and survive. Ms Taylor, a 63 year old school teacher from Michigan, accompanied by her cat, decided to tempt fate in an effort to gain fame and fortune. The Pan American […]

The Niagara River is one of the most celebrated and visited rivers in the world. It is here where a mighty river divides two countries; New York State on one side and Ontario Canada on the other. During the length of its 56 km course (35 miles) the river is interspersed with a magnificent falls, […]

On a warm July afternoon in 1960 Jim Honeycutt, from Niagara Falls, New York took two young friends for a boat ride in the upper Niagara River. The boat quickly developed engine problems, and capsized, throwing the three passengers into the river upstream from the falls. Jim Honeycutt was quickly swept over the edge to […]

Have you ever found yourself wondering about Niagara Falls History or how Niagara Falls was formed? Know your Niagara Falls history! Frozen Niagara Falls is a big hit with tourist. Here are some of the coolest questions: So, why does Niagara Falls freeze? How was Niagara Falls formed? The Clovis people were the first known […]

Early in North American history, convenient water travel, excellent fishing and fertile soils attracted Indian tribes to the Fort Erie area. However it was the abundance of flint in the rocky ledges of the local Lake Erie shoreline that kept the native people here on a continuing basis. From this stone they fashioned their tools […]