Niagara Falls is probably the world's best known waterfall. It sits on the border between Canada and the United States of America and lies between the two cities of Niagara Falls. Canada has one of the cities and the United States the other. The distinctive Horseshoe Falls is probably the best known section of the falls and most people would be able to identify the site from one of the thousands of pictures that we see. The Niagara Falls history books show that the site became very popular during the 18th Century, when tourism and travelling became fashionable.

The falls were formed around 10,000 years ago by a Wisconsin glacier. This glacier is also responsible for the Great Lakes and other geographic features in the area. Uneven erosion caused by the melted ice flow which created some tremendous gorges and falls and the work is in progress. Niagara Falls history shows that the falls themselves have actually moved a few miles south as the erosion continues due to the pounding of the water. The site of the falls used to be by Queenstown, Ontario and Lewiston in the State of New York. It is thought that, although the movement of the falls will slow down due to engineering technology being able to reduce erosion, the falls may end up being positioned such as they will drain Lake Eerie. Such is the force of the water.

Six million cubic feet of water have been known to pass over the falls per minute. Although this was during its greatest flow, an average of four million cubic feet will pound over the rocks under normal circumstances. It is a little unclear as to who first reported sighting the falls. It would seem that books about Niagara Falls history give the name of Frenchman Samuel de Champlain as having written the first reports of the spectacular waterfalls which members of his exploration party witnessed. There are, however, many others who described having seen the amazing sight and it is difficult to credit the discovery to anyone with any great certainty.

A river crossing in the area became increasingly important in the 1800s and a footbridge was constructed in 1848. Since this time there have been many bridges constructed, some of which were more successful than others. Two of the bridges built in the 1800s are still present today. One of these was the first steel arch bridge which was built in 1897, also know as the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge. The other is the International Railway Bridge which was constructed in 1873. This is still carrying around 12 trains a day over the river.

Modern day Niagara Falls history revolves mainly around the harnessing of the power created by the falls into electricity. With this amount of water hurtling over the falls, there is much that can be done by way of using the energy to power the needs of people in the area. Niagara Falls is both a wonderful natural wonder and a potential answer to our modern needs.

Wendy Pan is an accomplished niche website developer and author. To learn more about Niagara Falls history, please visit Niagara Falls Packages for current articles and discussions. http://www.niagarafallspackages.info/niagara-falls-history/