Some Niagara Falls Trivia

Over 14 million people visit and tour Niagara Falls every year!
"Niagara" comes from a native word that has been translated as "the neck" or "great throat" or "thunder of waters".
Niagara Falls are up to 57 meters (188 ft) in height. There are higher waterfalls, but it is the great volume of water, 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!
A large drainage area, including four of the Great Lakes, flows through the Niagara River, which amounts to one fifth of the world's fresh water supply.
On March 29, 1848, the Niagara River stopped flowing for 30 hours due to an ice jam at the mouth of the river at Lake Erie.
Niagara Falls began 12,000 years ago at the end of the ice age and has eroded back 1 m (3 ft) per year, over a distance of 11 kilometres (7 miles)to its' current location.
Niagara Falls is the location of the world's first development of hydro- electric power in 1893, with the use of alternating current, and the first place electricity was transmitted a long distance, being sent to Buffalo, New York.
Over five million horsepower or four million kW hours of electricity are generated by the Niagara River.
During the war of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain, which lasted three years, over 80% of the land battles took place along the Niagara River.
On October 14, 1812, at the major battle on the Queenston Heights, the British had a victory and captured 925 American soldiers.
On December 24, 1814, the Americans and British signed the treaty of Ghent, resulting in an end to the war, and peace along the world's largest undefended border, called the Peace of Christmas Eve.
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 Maid of the Mist boat ride began in 1846, becoming one of North America's first tourist attractions.
The Floral Clock is one of the world's largest, consisting of over 15,000 small plants placed 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.