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Until
1912,visitors were allowed to actually walk out on the ice bridge and
view the Falls from below. February 24th of 1888 the local newspaper
reported that at least 20,000 people watched or tobogganed on the ice.
Shanties selling liquor, photographs and curiosities abounded. On February
4th 1912 the ice bridge broke up and three tourists’ lives were lost. There
can also be a great deal of «mini-icebergs» which flow down the
Niagara River from frozen Lake Erie. The flow of ice has been reduced
considerably by the yearly installation of the «ice-boom» on Lake Erie.
The ice-boom is a long floating chain (2miles- 3.2 KM) of steel
floats strung across the Niagara River from Buffalo New York to Fort Erie
Ontario. It is set in place during the month of December and removed
during the month of March or April.
It is maintained by the New York State Power Authority. The
ice boom helps prevent the ice from clogging the river and most
importantly the hydroelectric companies water
intakes. HOWEVER.... The flow of water was stopped completely over both falls on March 29th 1848 due to an ice jam in the upper river for several hours. This is the only known time to have occurred. The Falls did not actually freeze over, but the flow was stopped to the point where people actually walked out and recovered artifacts from the riverbed! Interesting facts about Niagara Falls The flow over the American Falls was stopped completely for several months in 1969. The idea was to determine the feasibility of removing the large amount of loose rock from the base of the falls to enhance it’s appearance. In the end the final decision was that the expense would be too great. The word «Niagara» is derived from the Iroquois Indian word «Onguiaahra» meaning «the strait». There is an international boundary between the United States and Canada. The movies Niagara and Superman were filmed in part at the Falls. In the past ten years, two daredevils lost their lives trying to conquer Niagara. In the evenings, intense spotlights bathe the falls with different shades of color. The first person to go over the Falls in a barrel and survive was a 63 year old female schoolteacher. High wire tightrope acts used to be performed across the river. Most notably was «Blondin» who once actually carried his manager across on his back, stopping midway to rest ! The Falls make a tremendous sound as the water goes over and lands at the bottom.
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