Jul 13 2006
Niagara Falls Frozen in 1911
It must have been really cold that winter!Â
 
tags: niagara falls freezes, niagara falls frozen in 1911, niagara falls frozen solid, old photo of niagara falls
35 responses so far
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I have heard that it can not be confirmed that this is a true picture of Niagara Falls. It is also said that they have never ever froze!
reading this should help you decide if it “froze solid”. It did not, never has in the past few hundred anyway. http://forum2.breakthechain.org/viewtopic.php?p=4441&
How could fast moving water freeze as seen in the picture? This picture must be bogus.
Moving water can freeze, hense icicles. I have heard from numerous sources that Niagara Falls froze in the winter of 1911. Whether or not this photograph is real is not for me to say, I’m not an expert. However, I do believe that the information is real.
Does anyone know for sure how cold it would have to be to freeze the falls as pictured?
http://tommytonline.com/rdooley/knhistory.htm
WAS IT 1934
http://www.world-english.org/facts_amazing.htm
OR 1932?
http://www.nielbrooks.com/journal/?p=88
OR 1911?
http://www.rense.com/general74/froze.htm
1911
FURTHER SEARCH COULD REVEAL MORE.
YOU WILL SEE SEVERAL OTHER PIX HERE!
THIS SITE SAYS FROZE 6 TIMES SINCE RECORDS BEGAN!
http://photoshoptechniques.com/forum/showthread.php?t=20856
http://www.nfpl.library.on.ca/nfplindex/show.asp?id=96629&b=1 THIS IS 1934!
NOW THAT’S FROZEN!
SOURCE: nIAGARA fALLS pUBLIC lIBRARY
http://www.nfpl.library.on.ca/nfplindex/show.asp?id=88854&b=1
1911 POST CARD MAKES IT REAL
http://www.nfpl.library.on.ca/nfplindex/results.asp
see 1931, 1934, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1912,
http://www.nfpl.library.on.ca/nfplindex/results.asp?sk=499331&start=11&db=5
JUST SET THE SEARCH TO ‘keywords’, ENTER FROZEN,
CLICK SEARCH.
84 PIX IN ALL.
ALL FROZE SOLID, BOTH SIDES!
YES! EVEN 1960!
EVEN A PHOTO FROM FROZEN 1879!
1885,AND 1966 AND 1982!
i THINK THIS IS A STUDY IN HOW SHORT MEMORY IS?
Wes- All those pictures look really cool! Thx for sharing. Just to clarify though… those seem to be pix of the American falls which is the smaller one. No evidence of Horseshoe Falls Freezing completely. Could be wrong though! Haven’t done the research! But would love to see a photo if anyone can find one!
As the saying goes, “A picture is worth a thousand words”. It had to be a brutally cold winter that year.
I found this link regarding the freezing over issue. They state that it’s false. Whether it’s true or not, I don’t know.
http://www.niagarafallslive.com/Facts_about_Niagara_Falls.htm
(the above link was found on the following webpage:
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=355369)
I STILL DON’T KNOW HOW COLD IT WAS AT NIAGARA FALLS TO MAKE IT FREEZE LIKE THAT.
IT MUST OF BEEN A BEAUTIFUL SITE TO SEE.
this image is fake. it is impossible for water to freeze instantly whilst in motion. icicles form with tiny drops of water dripping and leaving behind residue creating an icicle. This flow of water is moving to fast to freeze. Plus if it did freeze the temprature would be so cold that people would be dead!
proven!!!
During very, very cold winters, ice can form at the edges of a river, then creep from the bank to the river’s center. Sometimes from 20 to 50 feet thick, ice bridges can form. The photo of Niagra is probably authentic. During the 1800’s and early 1900’s, tourists were able to walk out onto the ice bridges of Niagra. From what I’ve read, during the 1920’s several tourists were killed when a portion of the Niagra bridge broke loose. Since then, tourists are not allowed on the river during icing.
If Enough Water Froze In The River Of Niagra Falls, Then That Would Clog The Rushing Water Enough To Let The Falls Freeze.
According to the Niagara parks commission (http://www.niagaraparks.com/nfgg/geology.php) the falls did in fact freeze seven times since 1848 sa a result of ice jams in the upper river. This hasn’t occurreds ince 1954 because of the diversion of water to the hydroelectric plant and due to the construction of an ice boom on Erie. As written on the parks commission website:
“An ice jam requires special conditions for formation: cold conditions to form ice sheets on Lake Erie, mild weather to break up the sheets into floes, followed by gale-force south-west winds to drive the ice down the river, then continued cold. the most recent was in 1956.”
Sorry doubters…you are wrong! The Falls can freeze due to reduced river flow from ice jams, but unfortunately it will probably never occur again due to human “progress”.
Not to argue semantics about it being completely frozen, but…
In 1911, the types of film/emulsions they were using likely required a slow shutter speed, and this would cause any water flowing to take on a misty/fuzzy look. In the falls part of the picture, you can see lots of sharply defined icicles, and about 4 streams where it looks misty/fuzzy. These misty parts are running water, so the falls are not completely frozen in this picture.
To the geography genius - no one said the falls froze over instantly!! You need to go back to school. The winters years ago started much earlier and lasted much longer, so gradual freezing over is possible. I have seen this on rivers locally where the flow is quite rapid.
The American and Bridal Veil Falls have frozen over completely several times, it is documented in several different places including the Niagara Parks Commission Web Page. This has been caused mainly to natural phenomenon of the ice jams in the upper river. If you have ever been to the falls you can appreciate the fact that those falls are much smaller than the Horseshoe Falls, and could in fact freeze over if the right circumstances presented themselves. I have never found any articles or history of all three falls freezing over, I think the sheer size of the Horseshoe Falls prevents this from happening. I was in Niagara Falls about two weeks ago. Although this winter was mild up until January, we have had a long stretch of cold this past month or so. Just as an example, the American and Bridal Veil Falls had ice nearly halfway up the precipice, and encroaching from the shores, while the Horseshoe Falls showed none of that, they were flowing as they do in the summer. So yes, based on what I have read and in first person account I can see how the falls could have frozen over, even if it is semantics…all three maybe not, but the two smaller ones, most definitely!
Even if the picture is fake, it still looks pretty cool. I’m really lloking forward to my first visit to Canada in October. Hopefully it’s not as cold as it was in the winter fo 1911!!
hmmm… not really sure what to believe?!?!?! seeing as how it seems so cool to be true, but so bogus to be false… but my only question is how would you make it look as if it was frozen.. I mean there is nowhere where you could make it look that way… except in antartica. so leave a response; i’d love it!! just prove me wrong!!
♥ ann marie
It’s wonderful to see this picture
well im in the raf and proving that niagra falls frozen has plummited the exact temprature would have to be -1000c thats impossible that is diabolical just like the davinci code ITS A LOAD OF BULL
The Niagara River handles 212,000 cubic feet of water per second. The average depth is approximately 16 feet with a flow rate of 4 to 8 miles per hour. The Niagara River does not freeze over. The Falls of Niagara and the river below the Falls does not freeze either. The volume of water going over the Falls, the depth and speed of the water below the Falls also precludes freezing. The water will not be stopped or frozen solid.
The ice bridge however does form at the base of Falls and over portions of the Niagara River below the Falls. The ice bridge is formed in late December to the end of February and into mid March dependant on the weather.
Lake Erie which drains into the Niagara River is a large lake but rather shallow. By the end of December, the entire lake surface is frozen over. Although an ice boom has been put into place since the 1960’s at the mouth of the Niagara River and Lake Erie. The boom holds back most of the ice but not all. When the ice goes over the Falls in volume the ice freezes to the edges of the gorge and builds upon itself until the river is covered in this giant layer of ice. This layer has grown to eighty feet thick in the past and currently 40 feet is not uncommon.
The Falls of Niagara still flows as does the water under the ice and the ice shelf seems to rise on layer of air that builds under the ice surface.
The American Falls have frozen over on six occasions since the keeping of records began. Each were attributed to ice jams that have actually curtailed the flow of the American Falls to mere trickles.
Unlike the Horseshoe Falls (which has never frozen over), the American Falls are susceptible to freezing because of the small amount of water flow. Normally the American Falls has a peak mean flow of 10,000 cubic feet of water per second. The winter mean water flow is reduced to less than 8,000 cubic feet of water per second. This minimal flow is barely sufficient to cover the rock face of the Falls. During harsh winters, ice frequently built up at eastern end of Goat Island causing an ice dam to reduce the water flow to the northern channel which feeds water to the American Falls. As a result water flow is restricted sufficiently that any remaining waters quickly freeze over.
The installation of the ice boom at the mouth of Lake Erie, the building of the International water control dam (which regulates water flow) and milder winters have all but eliminated the possibility of the American Falls ever completely freezing over in modern times.
The American Falls water flow was reduced to such an extent in 1909, 1936, 1938 and 1949 that it froze over.
On February 7th 1936, as a result of an ice jam at the eastern end of Goat Island the American Falls froze completely. The flow started to freeze on January 27th. The American Falls remained frozen for a period of 15 days before the ice dam upriver broke apart and returned the flow of water of the Falls to normal.
The American Falls today receives only 10% of the total water flow. In the early 1900’s that flow was much less, perhaps only 5%. The low level of water flow was amplified because of the beginning of water diversion for hydro generation and the lack of a method to divert water towards the American shoreline. The riverbed above the Falls slopes towards the Canadian shore.
Long before the ice boom was utilized at the mouth of Lake Erie to hold back the lake ice, all the ice flowed through the Niagara River. The amount of ice flowing into the river depended upon winds blowing over the lake. West & south-west winds brought more ice flow into the river while east winds would lessen the amount.
The April 1909 ice flow was sufficient to dam off the flow of water at the eastern end of Goat Island. What water was left (a mere trickle) quickly froze. People were able to walk on the river bed just above the American Falls where there was normally water. It wasn’t until the ice jam shifted and broke apart, that the water flow was returned to normal.
A second similar ice jam occurred in January of 1938. The ice jam was so substantial that it too cut off the main flow of water to the American Falls. Again the American Falls was reduced to a trickle and quickly froze. More importantly, it was this ice flow that caused the collapse of the Upper Steel Arch Bridge (Honeymoon Bridge).
Well I heard that the Niagara falls was frozen in 1911, but not after that just cos the world is getting hotter and hotter year after year
I live near the falls. The photograph is real, but it was from 1912. Copies of this and other images can be found on the Niagara Falls Public Library website at http://www.nfpl.library.on.ca/. I remember when the American Falls was completely shut off a few times during erosion control efforts in the 1960s. Now that was a weird sight to see on the news every night. They diverted the Niagara River away from the falls with a temporary dam and the Horseshoe Falls absorbed the extra flow. Check out this website to see images and explanations of both instances. http://www.niagarafallslive.com/Facts_about_Niagara_Falls.htm
compare the people to the size of the waterfall
I am a native of Niagara Falls and my family has lived here since the 1800’s. My grandparents had photos of the falls frozen. It indeed happened and an explanation for those not believing, the falls froze from the bottom up. The river below froze, forming glaciers that moved towards the falls. The mist that hit the rocks instantly froze and made these glaciers even larger. Eventually, the glaciers froze to the rocks belowand the falling water began the freezing process as it froze to these enormous mountains of ice. Within a week the entire river above and below the falls had frozen and the falls just as quickly.
well i still think its impossible the falls froze and indeed compare the people to the falls….i live in toronto and every year i go to the falls and i remeber the falls quait a bit larger then in the foto.. plus its way toomuch water to freez in my opinion the water that would freeze at the bottom would break by the impact of the falling water from the falls so how could it build upfrom the bottom??????
asks yourselfs that!!!
Everyone is so quick to say that it can’t freeze - we forget that mother nature is still in charge of the weather.
Mother nature nothin….40 days and nights of rain, foretold to man who was warned to build a floating zoo….people said it did not happen.
Global warming nothin…it is ‘as in the days of Noah’…people! Wake up! It is global warning!
now is the day for the house of God to be built…the glory of the Creator, shall be seen in all the earth. Whoever is still sleeping will be left out of the picture!
hey i was woundering when this pic was cause my mom told me everyone was skating on the ice long time ago but i was loooking at niagara falls and this pic came up cause i really dont belive my mom i thought she was fucking wityh me
I saw a show on the history channel about this. It has frozen many times. Not sure what all the fuss is about. Google it people.
Prior to getting married in 1978, my then wife to be went on a student exchange from England to Brockport Uni. Rochester NY. I think it was in ‘76, may have been 1975, but it was a very cold winter the year she went.
During her stay (her first to the USA) she was taken to Niagara to see the falls, only to find to her dismay and disappointment that they were in fact frozen at the time of her visit. I too recall seeing pictures in the British press at that time wherein were published pictures of the frozen falls. As to whether or not they were actually ‘frozen solid’ with no water flow at all, I cannot say, but from the pictures and the report from my wife, if there was any, then it can’t have been much.
Yet I see or find no reference to this here. Only earlier years! Maybe I need to look again, which I intend to do, or perhaps someone can recall this event?