Niagara Facts

 

Did you know these facts about Niagara Falls
  • Over 14 million people visit and tour Niagara Falls every year!
  • "Niagara" comes from a native word that can be translated as "the neck" or "great throat" or "thunder of waters".
  • Niagara Falls are are not the highest waterfalls. At their tallest, they are up to 57 meters (188 ft) in height. It is the great volume of water flowing over them, combined with the height, that makes Niagara Falls unique and so spectacular.
  • During peak season, over 100,000 cubic feet or 3000 tons of water go over Niagara Falls per second. That's enough to fill a million bathtubs a minute.
  • The Niagara River is only 58 kilometres (36 miles) long and connects Lake Erie to Lake Ontario.
  • Four of the Great Lakes flow through the Niagara River. This amounts to 1/5 of the world's fresh water supply.
  • An ice jam at the mouth of the Niagara River, at Lake Erie, stopped the river from flowing for 30 hours,On March 29, 1848.
  • Niagara Falls started 12,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age and eroded back 1 m (3 ft) per year for a distance of 11 kilometres (7 miles)to it's present location.
  • The Niagara River is the border between the USA and Canada. Niagara Falls is made up of three waterfalls -American, Bridal Veil, and Canadian Horseshoe.
  • The best view of all three Niagara Falls is on the Canadian side of the river and the border.
  • Niagara Falls is the home of the world's first Hydro-electric power development in 1893, and the first place electricity was transmitted a long distance, being sent to Buffalo, New York.
  • Over five million horsepower (four million kW hours) of electricity are generated by the Niagara River.
  • During the three year war of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain, over 80% of the land battles took place along the Niagara River.
  • At the major battle on the Queenston Heights, the British had a victory and captured 925 American soldiers, on October 14, 1812, .
  • On December 24, 1814, the Americans and British signed the treaty of Ghent, also called the Peace of Christmas Eve, resulting in an end to the war, and peace along the world's largest undefended border.
  • Niagara-on-the-Lake is where the government of Ontario Parliament legislature began, and the first place in the world anti-slavery legislation was passed, in 1793.
  • Captain Matthew Webb, the first person to swim the English channel, tried swimming through the Whirlpool rapids eight years later on July 24 1883, but was pulled under and didn't survive.
  • The first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel was a 63 year old schoolteacher from Michigan, named Annie Taylor, in 1901, and she survived.
  • A seven year old boy named Roger Woodward was swept over Niagara Falls on July 9, 1960, after a four meter (12 ft) aluminum boat capsized on the upper Niagara River. He was picked up alive by the Maid of the Mist boat.
  • On October 20, 2003, Kirk Jones, a 40 year old man from Michigan, intentionally went over Niagara Falls without any protection. He swam out unharmed at the bottom.
  • Jesse Sharpe, a 28 year old from Tennessee, went over Niagara Falls in a kayak on June 5, 1990. Robert Overacker, a 39 year old from California, used a jet ski to go over Niagara Falls on October 1, 1995. Neither of them made it.
  • The Maid of the Mist boat ride began in 1846 and has developed into a world famous attraction, operating from the end of April until October 24 each year.
  • The Floral Clock is one of the world's largest, consisting of over 15,000 small plants embedded close together and changed twice a year during the growing season.
  • The Welland Canal, opened in 1829, allows boats to bypass Niagara Falls and is part of the Saint Lawrence Seaway.
  • The world's first railroad suspension bridge was built over the Niagara River in 1848. Currently there are four modern bridges over this river connecting Ontario to New York State.