Facts and Figures of Niagara Falls

The Falls are situated on the Niagara River (which forms the border between Canada’s Ontario Province and America’s New York State) and are about half way down its course from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario.

The falls are divided, by Goat Island, into the larger, and concave, Canadian Horseshoe Falls (640m across and 54m high) and the smaller, roughly straight, American Rainbow Falls (330m across and 56m high). The water at the base of the Horseshoe Falls is very deep (~50m) and the Niagara rapids in the gorge are only slightly shallower (~30m).

Originally, about 6 million litres of water poured over the falls every second but now half of this is diverted to hydro-electric power stations (the world’s first hydro-electric power station was built at Niagara and now 70% of Canada’s electricity is hydro).

This decrease in flow has dramatically reduced the erosion of the falls from about 3-5 feet per year to about 1 foot every 3-10 years. They also now have the ability to temporarily stop the falls completely - which they did once to stop a daredevil who was (illegally) attempting to go over the falls in a barrel!

Seeing the Niagara Falls

Peak numbers of visitors occur in the summertime, when Niagara Falls are both a daytime and evening attraction. From the Canadian side, floodlights illuminate both sides of the Falls for several hours after dark (until midnight).

From the American side, the American Falls can be viewed from walkways along Prospect Park, which also features an observation tower. Nearby, the Cave of the Winds trail leads hikers down some three hundred steps to a point beneath Bridal Veil Falls. The Niagara Scenic Trolley offers guided trips along the American Falls.

On the Canadian side, Queen Victoria Park features manicured gardens, platforms offering spectacular views of both the American and Horseshoe Falls, and underground walkways leading into observation rooms which yield the illusion of being within the falling waters. The observation deck of the nearby Skylon Tower offers the highest overhead view of the Falls, and in the opposite direction gives views as far as distant Toronto.6 With the Konica Minolta Tower, it is one of two towers in Canada with a view of the Falls. Along the Niagara River, the Niagara River Recreational Trail runs the 56 km (35 miles) from Fort Erie to Fort George, and includes many historical sites from the War of 1812.

The Maid of the Mist cruises, named for an ancient Ongiara Indian mythical character, have carried passengers into the whirlpools beneath the Falls since 1846. The Spanish Aerocar, built in 1916 from a design by Spanish engineer Leonardo Torres y Quevedo, is a cable car which takes passengers over the whirlpool on the Canadian side, below the Falls.

Impact on industry and commerce in Niagara Falls

The enormous energy of the Falls was long recognized as a potential source of power. The first known effort to harness the waters was in 1759, when Daniel Joncairs built a small canal above the Falls to power his sawmill. Augustus and Peter Porter purchased this area and all of American Falls in 1805 from the New York state government, and enlarged the original canal to provide hydraulic power for their gristmill and tannery. In 1853, the Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Mining Company was chartered, which eventually constructed the canals which would be used to generate electricity. In 1881, under the leadership of Jacob Schoellkopf, enough power was produced to send direct current to illuminate both the Falls themselves and nearby Niagara Falls village.

When Nikola Tesla, for whom a memorial was later built at Niagara Falls, invented the three-phase system of alternating current power transmission, distant transfer of electricity became possible. In 1883, the Niagara Falls Power Company, a descendant of Schoellkopf’s firm, hired George Westinghouse to design a system to generate alternating current. By 1896, with financing from moguls like J.P. Morgan, John Jacob Astor IV, and the Vanderbilts, they had constructed giant underground conduits leading to turbines generating upwards of 100,000 horsepower (75 MW), and were sending power as far as Buffalo, twenty miles (32 km) away. Private companies on the Canadian side also began to harness the energy of the Falls, employing both domestic and American firms in their efforts. The Government of Ontario eventually brought power transmission operations under public control in 1906, distributing Niagara’s energy to various parts of that province. Currently between 50% and 75% of the Niagara River’s flow is diverted via four huge tunnels that arise far upstream from the waterfalls. The water then passes through hydroelectric turbines that supply power to nearby areas of the United States and Canada before returning to the river well past the Falls.

The most powerful hydroelectric stations on the Niagara River are Sir Adam Beck 1 and 2 on the Canadian side, and the Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant and the Lewiston Pump Generating Plant on the American side. All together, Niagara’s generating stations can produce about 4.4 GW of power.

In August 2005, Ontario Power Generation, which is now responsible for the Sir Adam Beck stations, announced plans to build a new 10.4 km tunnel to tap water from farther up the Niagara river than is possible with the existing arrangement. The project is expected to be completed in 2009, and will increase Sir Adam Beck’s yearly output by about 1.6 TW·h.
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Formation of the Falls

The historical roots of Niagara Falls lie in the Wisconsin glaciation, which ended some 10,000 years ago. Both the North American Great Lakes and the Niagara River are effects of this last continental ice sheet, an enormous glacier that crept across the area from eastern Canada. The glacier drove through the area like a giant bulldozer, grinding up rocks and soil, moving them around, and deepening some river channels to make lakes. It dammed others with debris, forcing these rivers to make new channels. It is thought that there is an old valley, buried by glacial drift, at the approximate location of the present Welland Canal.

After the ice melted back, drainage from the upper Great Lakes became the present-day Niagara River, which could not follow the old filled valley, so it found the lowest outlet on the rearranged topography. In time the river cut a gorge across the Niagara Escarpment, the north facing cliff or cuesta formed by erosion of the southwardly dipping (tilted) and resistant Lockport formation between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. In doing so it exposed old marine rocks that are much older than the geologically recent glaciation. Three major formations are exposed in the gorge that was cut by the Niagara River.

The Horseshoe Falls, one of the three Niagara Falls.

When the newly established river encountered the erosion-resistant Lockport dolostone, the hard layer eroded much more slowly than the underlying softer rocks. The aerial photo clearly shows the hard caprock, the Lockport Formation (Middle Silurian), which underlies the rapids above the falls and approximately the upper third of the gorge wall. It is composed of very dense, hard and very strong limestone and dolostone.

Immediately below, comprising about two thirds of the cliff is the weaker, softer and more crumbly and sloping Rochester Formation (Lower Silurian). It is mainly shale, though it has some thin limestone layers, and contains large quantities of fossils. Because it erodes more easily, the river has undercut the hard cap rock and created the falls.

Submerged in the river in the lower valley, hidden from view, is the Queenston Formation (Upper Ordovician), which is composed of shales and fine sandstones. All three formations were laid down in an ancient sea, and their differences of character derive from changing conditions within that sea.
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Things To Do in Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls is comprised of 200 acres of protected land. There are ample activities to please visitors of all ages. Taking a hike and then enjoying a quiet picnic is one possibility. Photographers will be delighted by the variety of sites throughout the area. Those tourists needing more hands-on activities will be thrilled with the wide variety of attractions.

The Aquarium of Niagara offers a wide array of marine life for viewing and examining. The popular Maid Of The Mist tour takes tourists on a close-up ride of Niagara Falls. For those more adventurous souls, take a tethered helium balloon ride over Niagara and experience the area from a wildly different viewpoint. Niagara Falls offers far more than a tourist could ever imagine. Shopping, attractions, and fine dining are only a start.

Getting in Niagara Falls

Arrivals in Niagara Falls are limited to bus and rail service, with the closest airports at Buffalo (Buffalo Niagara International Airport - BUF), Hamilton (John Munro International Airport - YHM) and Toronto (Lester Pearson International Airport - YYZ).

Rail service is provided in Canada twice daily to the Niagara Falls Rail Station on Bridge Street to Toronto (VIA RAIL also stops at St. Catharines, Grimsby, Aldershot (Burlington) and Oakville), New York City (AMTRAK also stops at Niagara Falls NY, Buffalo-Exchange, Buffalo-Dick Road, Rochester, Syracuse, Utica, Schenectady, and Albany-Troy.

Bus service is provided by Trentway Wagar (Coach Canada) and Greyhound Lines of Canada. Some service on Trentway Wagar or Greyhound Lines of Canada may operate with Adirondack Trailways, Capitol Trailways and New York Trailways equipment. Follow directions of terminal announcements to find your correct bus. The Niagara Falls Coach Terminal is located at the corner of Bridge Street and Erie, in Downtown Niagara Falls.

Most services operate on the Hamilton/Niagara Falls line run, the Niagara Falls/Toronto line run, and the Niagara Falls/Buffalo line run. A station agent can tell you about through service or connecting services from other cities.

Demographics of Niagara Falls

As of the censusGR2 of1230000, there were 55,593 people, 24,099 households, and 14,266 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,527.7/km² (3,955.7/mi²). There were 27,837 housing units at an average density of 765.0/km² (1,980.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 76.21% White, 18.72% African American, 1.64% Native American, 0.71% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.68% from other races, and 1.99% from two or more races. 2.00% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 24,099 households out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.2% were married couples living together, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.8% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,800, and the median income for a family was $34,377. Males had a median income of $31,672 versus $22,124 for females.

History of Niagara Falls

The City of Niagara Falls was incorporated in 1892. Historically, the city was built up around factories that utilized the power of the falling water for energy. Now the downtown area is a park (Niagara Falls State Park) affording a close-up view of the American, Horseshoe and Bridal Veil Falls. The European intrusion into the area began in the 17th Century with missionaries and explorers. This interaction of the local tribes, already hostile, was rapidly converted to open warfare by the competition for the fur trade.

By the end of the 19th Century, the city was a heavy industrial area, due in no small part to the huge power potential offered by the swiftly-flowing Niagara River. The city still has a strong industrial base, but its location is away from the tourist areas.

While its Canadian twin, Niagara Falls, Ontario, began massively building up its tourism industry in the 1990s, allowing for casinos and tall tower hotels, essentially becoming the “Las Vegas of Canada,” Niagara Falls, New York, did very little. In 2004, the Seneca Nation of Indians opened the Seneca Niagara Casino in the former Niagara Falls Convention and Civic Center, which thereby became sovereign Native American territory in the midst of the city.

The first humans arrived in Niagara Region almost 12,000 years ago, just in time to witness the birth of the Falls. The land was different then, consisting of tundra and spruce forest. During this time (the Palaeo-Indian Period, which lasted until 9,000 years ago), Niagara was inhabited by the Clovis people. These nomadic hunters likely camped along the old Lake Erie shoreline, living in simple, tiny dwellings. They left little to mark their tenure except chipped stones. These large, fluted projectile points were likely to fell the caribou, mastodons, moose and elk that roamed the land.

By 9,500 years ago a deciduous forest apparently covered southernmost Ontario. This forest supported the hunter-gatherers of the Archaic Period (9,000 to 3,000 years ago) with a diet of deer, moose, fish and plants. Small groups hunted in the winter, feeding on nuts and animals attracted to the forest. Larger groups came together during the summer, setting up fishing camps at the mouths of rivers and along lakeshores.

The Woodland Period lasted from 3,000 to 300 years ago, culminating in the peak of Iroquois culture in southern Ontario. Corn, bean and squash agriculture provided the main sources of food. With their bellies full, the Iroquois had time for other pursuits and the population boomed. Small palisaded villages were built, with nuclear or extended families occupying individual longhouses. During this period, burial rituals and ceramics were introduced to Ontario. Society became more complex with a political system based on extended kinship and inter-village alliances.

When the European explorers and missionaries arrived at the beginning of the 17 th Century, the Iroquoian villages were under the direction of various chiefs elected from the major clans. In turn, these villages were allied within powerful tribal confederacies.

Unfortunately, inter-tribal warfare with the Five Nations Iroquois of New York State, made worse by the intrusion of the Europeans, dispersed the three Ontario confederacies, the Huron, the Petun and the Neutral. Niagara ceased to be the territory of those who lived in harmony with nature. Still, this fascinating period of native occupation cries out for interpretation and study. Since human settlement requires drinking water, sites within 150 metres of rivers and lakeshores have the greatest archaeological potential. Palaeo-Indian sites in Niagara would most likely be associated with the series of relic beach ridges that once formed the shore of early Lake Erie. (more…)

Introducation of Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls is a city located in Niagara County, New York. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 55,593. It is across the Niagara River from Niagara Falls, Ontario, both named after the famed Niagara Falls which they share. It has been considered part of the Buffalo, New York metro area.

The Maid of the Mist boat goes right up to the foot of the falls and departs from both the U.S. and Canadian sides. The Maid of the Mist cruises are famous the world over. The boat takes you first to the base of the American Falls and then on to the basin of the Canadian Horseshoe Falls. This is a spectacular experience. Giant rock formations stretch above you while waves crash against the rocks in the river as well as the boat. Raincoats are provided because at times, the mist is as thick as rain. For an aerial view from the Canadian shore, ride the elevator to the top of either the Skylon Tower or the Minolta Tower Centre. There’s also a cable-car ride that takes visitors out over the Niagara Gorge and the Great Gorge Adventure, a boardwalk along the water, downriver from the falls.

The Great Gorge Adventure is a marvelous trip. You walk along a boardwalk beside a raging stretch of white water while viewing some of the most spectacular scenery in the world. Next to the Falls themselves, this is the most magnificent view of the Niagara River. The waters of the Niagara River have cut through this gorge for thousands of years. Walk out onto the platform and see the wonders of this river up close. It is a spectacular sight to see nature at work in the narrowest part of the river.

For a bird’s eye view of the Niagara River, take a trip on Niagara’s Helicopter Rides. Since1961, Niagara Helicopters Limited has been flying enthused sightseers over the Falls as well as the attractions. This may well be the highlight of your trip.

When standing on the Canadian side of the US/Canada border and looking toward the Falls, you see the American Falls to the left. A smaller waterfall toward the center is the “Bridal Veil Falls.” To the right is the “Horseshoe” or Canadian Falls.

The height of the American Falls is 176 feet, though rock and rubble at the base changes the measurement to 70 feet. Each second, 150,000 US gallons of water fall into the beautiful Niagara River. The length of the brink of the American Falls is 1,060 feet. (more…)