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Niagara Falls
KNOWLEDGE OF Niagara Falls
The Thunder of Waters
In geological terms, today's spectacular cascades of roaring water known as Niagara Falls are relatively young, having been formed a mere 12,000 years ago by the glaciers that created the Niagara River. Coincidentally, it is believed that the first people to settle in and around the area arrived at the same time—and probably witnessed the birth of the Falls! These people, known as the Clovis, were Nomadic hunters who survived by following the herds of giant caribou, mastodons and elk.
About 9,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers replaced the Clovis and lived on nuts, fruits and small animals in the winter and fish in the summer. Those we would recognize as modern native people came upon the scene around 3,000 years ago, and their culture, which was ultimately doomed by the arrival of white explorers, missionaries and settlers, culminated approximately 300-400 years ago in the Iroquois Confederation.
Although some historians argue that Etiènne Brulé may have been the first explorer to look upon the Falls in 1615, that honour usually goes to a Recollet priest by the name of Louis Hennepin. Hennepin came upon the falls in 1678 and recorded the fact in a book that would make him famous across Europe and would come to have his name on numerous parks and streets throughout the Niagara Region, including Hennepin Park in Buffalo.
Thanks to another priest, the Jesuit Gabriel Lalemant, the Falls already had a name: the Iroquois Onguiaahra, meaning "the strait" or more excitingly, "thunder of waters." This quickly devolved into the more easily pronounceable "Niagara."
The Roar of Cannons
The roar of the mighty cataract isn't the only one to have been heard down through the years. There have also been cannons and musket fire, in particular during the War of 1812, the last war to be fought between the neighbours. In this war, fought around the Niagara region over a period of two years, Canada (still part of the British Empire, of course) can claim to have battled the Americans to a standstill.
Following a declaration of war by American President James Madison, troops invaded the British side of the Niagara River. Pitched battles were fought from Fort Erie to Queenston Heights Park and from Fort George to Lundy’s Lane, which is considered by many historians to have been the pivotal battle in the war. It is memorialised in the Lundy's Lane Historical Museum, built atop the actual battlefield (now part of downtown Niagara Falls). There's also a monument to British commander Sir Isaac Brock, whose troops retook Queenston after the general was felled by a sniper's bullet.
After the war, the area rebuilt and developed rapidly thanks to the unbeatable combination of natural beauty, strategic positioning, cheap transportation and energy, the opening of the Welland and Erie Canals and the lure of industrial development along the border. It was also at around this time that the Falls started to become a destination point for honeymooners and other tourists. In fact, by the 1870's, Niagara Falls' main industry was tourism. Even though the lure of the Falls for newlyweds has waned, an estimated 50,000 couples still celebrate the start of their married lives here each year.
In geological terms, today's spectacular cascades of roaring water known as Niagara Falls are relatively young, having been formed a mere 12,000 years ago by the glaciers that created the Niagara River. Coincidentally, it is believed that the first people to settle in and around the area arrived at the same time—and probably witnessed the birth of the Falls! These people, known as the Clovis, were Nomadic hunters who survived by following the herds of giant caribou, mastodons and elk.
About 9,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers replaced the Clovis and lived on nuts, fruits and small animals in the winter and fish in the summer. Those we would recognize as modern native people came upon the scene around 3,000 years ago, and their culture, which was ultimately doomed by the arrival of white explorers, missionaries and settlers, culminated approximately 300-400 years ago in the Iroquois Confederation.
Although some historians argue that Etiènne Brulé may have been the first explorer to look upon the Falls in 1615, that honour usually goes to a Recollet priest by the name of Louis Hennepin. Hennepin came upon the falls in 1678 and recorded the fact in a book that would make him famous across Europe and would come to have his name on numerous parks and streets throughout the Niagara Region, including Hennepin Park in Buffalo.
Thanks to another priest, the Jesuit Gabriel Lalemant, the Falls already had a name: the Iroquois Onguiaahra, meaning "the strait" or more excitingly, "thunder of waters." This quickly devolved into the more easily pronounceable "Niagara."
The Roar of Cannons
The roar of the mighty cataract isn't the only one to have been heard down through the years. There have also been cannons and musket fire, in particular during the War of 1812, the last war to be fought between the neighbours. In this war, fought around the Niagara region over a period of two years, Canada (still part of the British Empire, of course) can claim to have battled the Americans to a standstill.
Following a declaration of war by American President James Madison, troops invaded the British side of the Niagara River. Pitched battles were fought from Fort Erie to Queenston Heights Park and from Fort George to Lundy’s Lane, which is considered by many historians to have been the pivotal battle in the war. It is memorialised in the Lundy's Lane Historical Museum, built atop the actual battlefield (now part of downtown Niagara Falls). There's also a monument to British commander Sir Isaac Brock, whose troops retook Queenston after the general was felled by a sniper's bullet.
After the war, the area rebuilt and developed rapidly thanks to the unbeatable combination of natural beauty, strategic positioning, cheap transportation and energy, the opening of the Welland and Erie Canals and the lure of industrial development along the border. It was also at around this time that the Falls started to become a destination point for honeymooners and other tourists. In fact, by the 1870's, Niagara Falls' main industry was tourism. Even though the lure of the Falls for newlyweds has waned, an estimated 50,000 couples still celebrate the start of their married lives here each year.
Chapi