Transcriber’s Note

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# THE NEW BOOK OF
NIAGARA
Scenes in Summer and Winter

“Niagara is an awful symbol of Infinite power—a version of Infinite beauty—a shrine, a temple erected by the hand of the Almighty for all the children of men.”—Oration by Jas. C. Carter.

BUFFALO, N. Y.
ROBERT ALLAN REID, Publisher,
253–257 Ellicott Street.

Copyrighted, 1901, by Robert Allan Reid. All rights reserved.

GENERAL VIEW OF THE FALLS.

Favorite positions for this view are Hennepin View in Prospect Park and the New Steel Bridge. At the left is the American Fall with Luna Island and Goat Island dividing it from the Horseshoe Fall. The Maid of the Mist, near her landing, and the inclined railway are minor objects of interest.

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CANADIAN FALL, AND MAID OF THE MIST.

A trip on the “Maid of the Mist” past the Falls is one of the most fascinating of the experiences to be had at Niagara. The views of the descending floods, the swirling water below and the rainbow through the mist all lend enchantment to the trip.

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AMERICAN FALL FROM PROSPECT POINT.

It is while standing at or near Prospect Point that the very large majority of people who visit Niagara get their first view of the wondrous cataract. At one wide sweep of vision Niagara is before you and you see the water pour over the edge of the precipice, falling with stupendous power on the rocks below.

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AMERICAN FALL FROM BELOW.

Standing on the rocks at the foot of the Inclined Railway in Prospect Park and looking at the down-pour of water over the American Fall, a new impression of Niagara’s greatness comes over you, and you marvel at the beauty of the mighty flood.

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THE FALLS BY MOONLIGHT.

Under the light of the full moon of summer time, when Nature has done her best to make the locality all about delightful, the mind is made receptive of the moonlight softness, and the beauty of the scene impresses all with its magnificence.

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PROSPECT POINT IN WINTER.

In winter and summer alike Prospect Point is one of the main vantage spots from which to view Niagara. Immediately below the Point the mountain grows to an unlimited size as the spray freezes, and builds it by night and by day. In the ice bridge season there is no better place to view it than Prospect Point.

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TERRAPIN ROCK AND HORSESHOE FALL FROM GOAT ISLAND.

The Horseshoe or Canadian Fall, as a single object, is regarded as the sublimest thing in Nature. The Canadian Rapids have a fall of 55 feet in three-quarters of a mile before reaching the Falls, while it is estimated that the volume of water is ten times greater than that passing over the American Fall.

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HORSESHOE FALL FROM BELOW.

The height of the Horseshoe Fall is 165 feet and the stupendous nature of the Fall is more impressive when the visitor stands at the water’s edge in the gorge and looks upward at the flood descending in such graceful lines.

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TERRAPIN POINT IN WINTER.

The scene at Terrapin Point in winter is one of brilliancy and splendor. The spray-cloud of the Horseshoe Fall is wafted to the shores of Goat Island where King Winter’s breadth congeals it all to a marble-like formation, and the snowy whiteness of the spectacle is dazzling in the bright sunlight.

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ICE MOUNTAIN AND ICE BRIDGE.

The beauty of this scene varies yearly, for the wind and weather have all to do with the magnitude of the formations. When the weather is exceedingly cold the ice mountain, between the American Fall and the Inclined Railway, attains a magnificent height. The ice also forms from shore to shore, enabling people to pass at will to the Canadian side, and forming what is popularly called the ice bridge.

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OBSERVATION TOWER VIEW OF GOAT ISLAND AND RAPIDS.

This view shows “the dividing of the waters” of Niagara River, and in the immediate front the American Rapids are seen flowing tumultuously onward towards the towering cataract. Far across beyond Goat Island are the Canadian Rapids. The greater grandeurs and immense boundaries of which are best seen from Victoria Park on the Canadian side.

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BRINK OF THE AMERICAN FALL.

Probably there is no one sight which impresses itself more strongly upon the great majority of beholders than this view of the brink of the American Fall. Such mighty on-rushing torrents, so powerful, yet so smoothly and alluringly moving on over the precipice, and so near is the visitor to what seems an abyss of destruction that the scene is never forgotten.

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THE AMERICAN FALL FROM GOAT ISLAND.

This view across American Fall is one never to be forgotten. Here the brink of the Fall is seen in all its beauty, while far across the Fall, Prospect Park, with its constant crowds, forms part of the picture. A fine view of the Upper Steel Bridge is also here enjoyed.

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HORSESHOE FALL BY SEARCHLIGHT.

This photographic masterpiece, the crest of the Horseshoe Fall by searchlight, taken from Falls View, is the only one of its kind ever made. “The scene is entrancing as the searchlight kisses the water into new beauty.”

ON THE BRIDGE AT MIDNIGHT. This is a night scene, the Upper Steel Bridge, made possible by the recent advancement in photography.

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WHIRLPOOL RAPIDS.

The Whirlpool Rapids begin within sight of the Falls. The gorge narrows to 300 feet and the current rushes onward at a speed of 40 miles an hour and the foam-crested waters are entrancingly beautiful.

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THE WHIRLPOOL.

The Whirlpool is about two miles below the Falls and is the greatest known river pocket. Into it the Rapids plunge in all their fury, and a gyrating motion is given the entire body of water. Here the river turns at right angles, causing one of the most mysterious and fascinating features of this mighty stream of water.

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INCLINED RAILWAY. AMERICAN FALL. LUNA ISLAND. CAVE OF THE WINDS. GOAT ISLAND. HORSESHOE FALL. TABLE ROCK. VICTORIA PARK.

PANORAMIC VIEW OF NIAGARA FALLS FROM THE CANADIAN SIDE.

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THE CANADIAN RAPIDS AND HORSESHOE FALL, FROM FALLS VIEW STATION.

This is one of the grand views to be had from the Canadian side of the river. The rapids, by their great descent and vastness, convey an impressive effect to the mind, and, together with the Falls and scenery of Victoria Park, combines to make one of the most pleasing pictures about Niagara. The entire length of the park is traversed by the electric cars, which are so great a convenience about Niagara, for tourists.

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AMERICAN FALL FROM CANADIAN SIDE.

Standing in Victoria Park, one gets a full front view of the American Fall, while at the right of the scene is Center Fall, flowing between Luna and Goat Islands. The American Fall has a width of 1,000 feet, a height of 158 feet, while the Rapids above descend forty feet in a half mile. All visitors should go to the Canadian side for the Canadian Fall and Rapids, the most imposing features of the Falls, are there best seen with their wonderful rainbow and mist effects, while the beauties of Victoria Park itself well repay a visit.

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THE GORGE.

The life work of Niagara River has been and continues to be the digging of the Niagara Gorge through which it flows. Those who have studied the subject thoroughly have reached the conclusion that the great trench was excavated by the running of the river itself. In its length, the gorge is in one sense a measure of the age of the river.

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SCENE ON THE “GORGE ROUTE.”

This Electric road runs along the New York Shore, for much of the way, about twenty feet up from the water, and affords unequaled views of the Whirlpool Rapids, the great bridge and cliffs, the Whirlpool and all scenic features. The objects of interest along the Gorge Route are only second to the two great cataracts themselves.

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HORSESHOE OR CANADIAN FALL IN WINTER.

The intensity of the mighty grasp of winter is at no point better portrayed than in its effects on the Horseshoe Fall. Gradually the waters are chilled and frozen until where yesterday the river plunged over the precipice in gleeful, laughing manner, huge stalactites of ice are hung reaching from the cliff-top to the slope below.

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ICE FORMATION AT CAVE OF THE WINDS.

In February, 1896, for a period of four days, the Cave of the Winds was dry, the water of the Fall being kept back by the ice formation. Visitors sought the cavern and roamed about admiring the icy scenes on every side. The photograph for the picture above was then made, and it may never be possible to obtain the same again.

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UPPER STEEL ARCH BRIDGE.

This wonderful example of man’s handiwork connects the extreme lower points of Prospect Park on the American side, with Victoria Park on the Canadian side. It has a single deck, is 1,268 feet long, 49 feet wide and 190 feet above the water, and was built in 1898. Splendid views are had from this bridge.

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THE ICE PALACE.

The Ice Palace, a thing of beauty in the production of which man essayed to supplement Nature, was erected in the State Reservation in the winter of 1898. “An area of 120 by 160 feet was covered by its gleaming walls of crystal. The entire structure was gay with bunting and flags by day and brilliant with electrical illumination by night.”

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BRIDGES AT NIAGARA.

LUNA ISLAND BRIDGE.

BRIDGE TO THIRD SISTER ISLAND.

BRIDGE TO SECOND SISTER ISLAND.

RUSTIC BRIDGE TO WILLOW ISLAND.

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LOWER STEEL ARCH BRIDGE.

This bridge spans the river at its narrowest part. It was built in 1897 by the Grand Trunk Railroad Company. It has two decks, the upper for railway trains and the lower for carriages and pedestrians. The arch has a span of 550 feet.

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TABLE ROCK AND THE DEVIL’S PULPIT.

This rocky plateau is located over the Devil’s Hole, on the American side, 300 feet above the wild waters of the Gorge. It has been the scene of many recorded and traditional battles and sanguinary struggles. Grand sweeps of scenery are to be witnessed from this commanding site.

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DEVIL’S HOLE.

The Devil’s Hole is a dark and gloomy chasm in the high bank, and has a depth of 150 feet. It is said to have been a store house for ammunition in early times. It is reached by the City trolley line and by the Gorge Road.

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BROCK’S MONUMENT

Stands on Queenston Heights, about four miles below the Whirlpool. It was erected to commemorate the memory of Sir Isaac Brock who fell in battle in the war of 1812. It is a noble shaft, 100 feet high, capped with a statue of Brock. It is seen for many miles in all directions.

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SUSPENSION BRIDGE AT LEWISTON.

This Suspension Bridge is now the only one which spans Niagara River. It links Queenston on the Canadian side with Lewiston on the American side, seven miles below the Falls, and is crossed by the Belt Line trolley route about the Gorge. The suspended span is 800 feet, and it has a cable span of 1040 feet.

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A FAMILIAR WINTER SCENE IN PROSPECT PARK.

In winter the high winds which prevail, sometimes for days at a time, catch the spray from the American Fall and carry it far back into the forest growth, the trees become ice-laden, and the transformation that takes place is beautiful in the extreme.

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THE RED MAN’S FACT

THE WHITE MAN’S FANCY

From the famous paintings by James Francis Brown.

To the Indians the thundering of the water was the voice of the Great Spirit; the spray-cloud his habitation. A portion of the crops and spoils of the chase were annually offered as tokens, and the fairest maiden of a tribe was sacrificed by being sent over the falls in a canoe laden with fruits and flowers.

No less than the Red Man, is his successor, the White Man, impressed with the majesty of the Creator’s power as displayed in the grandeurs of Niagara. “Between falling flood and rising cloud, you imagine a mystical meaning in the passage of body to soul, of matter to spirit, of human to divine.”

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ROCK OF AGES, AT CAVE OF THE WINDS.

Surrounded with an atmosphere of sentiment is this view at Niagara. It forms an artistic and pleasing picture. Evidently at some remote time in the past the rock has fallen from the cliff above. The famous cave of the winds lies back of the Center Fall. It is 100 feet high, 100 feet wide and 60 feet deep.

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