Welcome diggers, the site is fairly slow right now. I apologize for the inconvenience.
This photograph is one of two things. Either it’s another amazing piece of Photoshop trickery, or it’s an authentic capture of an extraordinary event. I’ve never been to the falls. Does anyone know if a frozen Niagara Falls is indeed possible?
Old rare photo frozen Niagara Falls 1911 - PhotoshopTechniques Forums
Update: Here are some more pictures (courtesy of Black Paintings X)
Update 2: Here are some more pictures from The Hillman Stereoview Archive.
Update 3: If you like these photographs, check out the The Crystal Cave of Giants in Mexico
Update 4: Jim Retzer was kind enough to send me some screen caps of an 8mm film he found. Check them out here.
Update 5: These screen caps look a lot like Montmorency Falls to me. See this National Geographic photo from 1978 for a comparison.
Update 6: Here is some news footage of a 25 foot frozen waterfall in Estonia.
The Valaste waterfall on the north-east coast of Estonia is the highest in the country. At 25 metres high, the waterfall is a spectacular site in any season, but with recent weather conditions it has been transformed into a winter wonderland.
Update 7: Here are a few modern day photos of the falls. Not frozen, but close.
I lived in New York near the falls my whole life and this has happened twice. The first time in 1875. People back then thought it was the signal of the end of the world. While walking the dry riverbed people found Muskets, Arrowheads and Tomahawks from the War of 1812.
It is no trickery. Niagara Falls indeed has the ability to freeze over. It doesn’t happen so much anymore because of an ice boom. The ice boom keeps the river and the falls from clogging up with ice. This must be done to keep the water intakes for the hydro electric plants running.
In the early 20th centruy it used to become so clogged up that an ice would create bridge. Each year there would be a winter festival held on the ice bridge.
[quote comment="4048"]I lived in New York near the falls my whole life and this has happened twice. The first time in 1875. People back then thought it was the signal of the end of the world. While walking the dry riverbed people found Muskets, Arrowheads and Tomahawks from the War of 1812.[/quote]
Did you get pictures of the things they found??? Did you fly down to Niagra Falls to view the frozen stuff.
Yup it’s real!
http://www.niagarafallslive.com/Facts_about_Niagara_Falls.htm
I think it is a fake. The human figures are out of scale. It would appear that the Falls are only about 20 times the human’s height. — Tofique Fatehi, Mumbai, India.
[quote comment="4201"][quote comment="4048"]I lived in New
I am interested that this quote comes from a Larry Killens. My name is Larry Killens!
York near the falls my whole life and this has happened twice. The first time in 1875. People back then thought it was the signal of the end of the world. While walking the dry riverbed people found Muskets, Arrowheads and Tomahawks from the War of 1812.[/quote]
Did you get pictures of the things they found??? Did you fly down to Niagra Falls to view the frozen stuff.[/quote]
[quote comment="4201"][quote comment="4048"]I lived in New York near the falls my whole life and this has happened twice. The first time in 1875. People back then thought it was the signal of the end of the world. While walking the dry riverbed people found Muskets, Arrowheads and Tomahawks from the War of 1812.[/quote]
Did you get pictures of the things they found??? Did you fly down to Niagra Falls to view the frozen stuff.[/quote]
“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.”
“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.”
“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 falls only froze over, after the river was blocked by the ice jam, reducing the flow to a trickle, thus allowing it to succumb to the freezing temps.
wow. looks pretty real to me and from Texas, that authentic enough
I have seen this picture when I was a very little girl. My mother had the picture. It is real alright. Amazing.
My mother had this picture when I was a young girl. I remember seeing it and her talking about it. It was certainly real.
Does anybody know what the temperature was when this happened? From the discussion is this the American side then and not Horseshoe?
A large waterfall does not do Niagara Falls justice; considering it is the world’s second largest waterfall. If you are interested in seeing the beauty of a magnificent waterfall, then Niagara Falls should be at the tiptop of your list.
[quote comment="4317"]I think it is a fake. The human figures are out of scale. It would appear that the Falls are only about 20 times the human’s height. — Tofique Fatehi, Mumbai, India.[/quote]
if u look closly, its just a small part of the falls that you can see, and the other side is where the people look like black dots. i am not sure if it is true, but i think that the people are in the right scale
I lived in The Buffalo, NY area for the first 32 years of my life. I have seen the other layer of the falls frozen, but the water was still running underneath, Now this picture, looks like people are standing in the Niagara River, but they are standing on a piece of land, called GOAT ISLAND.
THE OUTER LAYER, NOT THE OTHER LAYER
Wouldn’t catch me standing on those frozen banks…
no way!
lol..
i got an email forward that said something about the falls freezing over, so i started looking around and i found this site. http://www.niagarafallslive.com/Facts_about_Niagara_Falls.htm
you can check it out for yourself but this paragraph is maybe what you are looking for
“The tremendous volume of water never stops flowing, However, the falling water and mist create ice formations along the banks of the falls and river. This can result in mounds of ice as thick as fifty feet. If the Winter is cold for long enough, the ice will completely stretch across the river and form what is known as the “ice bridge”. This ice bridge can extend for several miles down river until it reaches the area known as the lower rapids.”
“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.”
Found this website that explains it all.
http://www.iaw.com/~falls/faq.html
Only the American Falls freezes, but there can be a sheet of ice over the Canadian Falls as explained on the website.
I have been to the Falls many times and there is no possible way that the horse shoe falls could completely freze over at the speed they flow. Maybe the American falls.
I always dream about visiting the falls and I did not know this happened. Amazing..thanks for the pics..there are awesome
This is real my great grandmother was there and has ten pics of it the people are real and so is the picture.When you say the people are out of scale they are not they just look like that because it is an old picture.YOU cant say its not real were you there no so just because you think it is not real dosent mean its not real.This picture was emailed to me and this is so increddible and beautiful.My son needs to do a 500 word report about Canada he has to use pics and this will be so cool when all the kids see it they will be so amazed.who took these pics? What was the temp? Who long did it last?And who thick was the ice?
If you have an answer to my questions please email me at “grina965@yahoo mail.mail”.Please email me i need the answers by 1/20/07
You Never truly realize just how bitterly or, severely cold it had to be for the entire Niagara Falls to be frozen solid. I wonder just how cold was it for that to happen.
I would not mind visiting Niagara falls I know that it is a major tourist attraction and as I live in Fredericton, new Brunswick Canada I hoe to be able to take the journy soon.
GO HOME! ALL OF U!
“A large waterfall does not do Niagara Falls justice; considering it is the world’s second largest waterfall. If you are interested in seeing the beauty of a magnificent waterfall, then Niagara Falls should be at the tiptop of your list.”
Niagara Falls are not the second-largest falls in the world at all. The “Facts About Niagara” site clearly was not well researched.
From Wikipedia:
“Upon seeing Iguazu, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt reportedly exclaimed “Poor Niagara!” Vastly larger than North America’s Niagara Falls, Iguazu is rivalled only by Southern Africa’s Victoria Falls which separates Zambia and Zimbabwe.
…
The water falling over Iguazu in peak flow has a surface area of about 400,000 square metres (1.3 million square feet) whilst Victoria in peak flow has a surface area of over 550,000 square metres (1.8 million square feet). By comparison, Niagara has a surface area of under 183,000 square metres (600,000 square feet). Victoria’s annual peak flow is also greater than Iguazu’s annual peak—9.1 million litres per second versus 6.5 million—though in times of extreme flood the two have recorded very similar maximum water discharge (well in excess of 12 million litres per second.). Niagara’s annual peak flow is about 2.8 million liters per second, although an all-time peak of 6.8 million has been recorded.”
For some lovely pictures of this waterfall, go to the Wikipedia article on “Iguazu Falls” for a full appreciation of its grand scale.
Re frozen Niagara picture.
If you do some research (which can be done on the internet) you will find that the closest the falls have come to freezing over was in 1848 due to ice blockage up the Niagara River (March 29-31 1848). The flow over the edge was reduced to a trickle but it has never stopped completely-NOT POSSIBLE. The pictures above may well be from 1911 but would be depicting the ice shelf that forms at the bottom of the falls regularly.
Note: tourists were able to walk out to ice shelf up until 1912 until
said shelf collapsed and killed 3 people. The ice shelf often collapses and reforms very quickly from December to March.
Schnug
Toronto, Ontario
I can believe all except the third picture. The quality of that picture doesn’t strike me as one that was taken almost 100 years ago. I don’t think the early cameras had that fine quality.
What was the actual temperature at the time the Niagra Falls froze?
In response to Rose’s question about temperature when the falls (mostly) froze in 1848, it was actually about 5C (sorry, Canadian speak for about 40 F) when the falls (MOSTLY) froze. It was caused by an unusual cross wind causing ice jams up the river. It is rare, but it was not due to overly or unusually cold temperature, just a rare wind direction change over the lake/river.
That one picture looks like a great toboggan run.
[quote comment="5550"]I can believe all except the third picture. The quality of that picture doesn’t strike me as one that was taken almost 100 years ago. I don’t think the early cameras had that fine quality.[/quote]
Not true. I have original photographs on my 4th Great Grandparents taken when they were celebrating their 50th anniversary, in the 1870’s. They died in the 1890’s, so I know the pics are that old. The quality of my pics is better than the pictures on this page.
Do the Falls Freeze over in the Winter?
Yes and No…… We’ll try to explain
The tremendous volume of water never stops flowing, However, the falling
water and mist create ice formations along the banks of the falls and river.
This can result in mounds of ice as thick as fifty feet. If the Winter is cold for
long enough, the ice will completely stretch across the river and form what
is known as the “ice bridge”. This ice bridge can extend for several miles
down river until it reaches the area known as the lower rapids.
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.
Spring Ice flowing underneath the North Grand Island Bridge
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!
The “Ice Bridge” underneath the Rainbow Bridge. 1997
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.
If the falls were to freeze over. How low would the temperature have to go?
Was not there - I’m too young. If you look closely at the photo there is a small amount of water spilling under the ice and creating a mist. That would have to be some REALLY good artistry to pull that off.
I know for a fact that the first picture is real. I doubted the rest because there are no hills where the picture shows hills… however they may have changed the landscape to make it tourist friendly. I have pics of the falls from 1945 to present and there are no hills just the river beneath the falls.
It is a rare photo (the top) because now that there is a power plant it will never ever freeze like that again.
If you have never visited the falls in the summer, you are missing a thrill… the roar of it can be heard from such a distance and you can feel the mist a 1/2 mile away!
did this actualy happen? And is there a chance of it happing again?
I do not believe!
Awesome pictures!
[quote comment="4317"]I think it is a fake. The human figures are out of scale. It would appear that the Falls are only about 20 times the human’s height. — Tofique Fatehi, Mumbai, India.[/quote]
it seems that way because water expands when it freezes so the water in the bed is higher then it would usually be, which in turn deminishes the size of the waterfall.
Well, the reasonable thing for anyone to do is research the photos to come up with a reasonable assumption. Checking on the Niagara Falls Live website http://www.niagarafallslive.com/Facts_about_Niagara_Falls.htm
The site says….
Do the Falls Freeze over in the Winter?
Yes and No…… We’ll try to explain
The tremendous volume of water never stops flowing, However, the falling
water and mist create ice formations along the banks of the falls and river.
This can result in mounds of ice as thick as fifty feet. If the Winter is cold for
long enough, the ice will completely stretch across the river and form what
is known as the “ice bridge”. This ice bridge can extend for several miles
down river until it reaches the area known as the lower rapids.
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!
Hey folks, the pictures are UNDETERMINED however if you check this on urban legends there has only 1 time in recorded history where the Canadian horseshoe falls were frozen over and that was 1848!
Here is a snippet of it:
only once in recorded history has freezing weather actually stopped water from flowing over the falls. This instance occurred in March 1848 when a preponderance of ice above the falls reduced the flow of water over the falls to a trickle, as reported in the Buffalo Express newspaper:
“The Falls of Niagara can be compared to nothing but a mere mill dam this morning. In the memory of the oldest inhabitants, never was there so little water running over Niagara’s awful precipice, as at this moment! Hundreds of people are now witnessing that which never has, and probably never may again be witnessed on the Niagara River.
Last night at 11 o’clock the factories fed from the waters of this majestic river were in full operation, and at 12 o’clock the water was shut off, the wheel suddenly ceased their revolutions, and everything was hushed into silence. Various are the conjectures as to the cause; the most reasonable of which is that Lake Erie must be making a grand delivery of ice, and this the mouth of the Niagara, although large, is not quite enough to take in the whole at once, and that the consequences are, back water.”
Although we don’t really have any doubts that the photograph in question is a genuine image produced at a time when much of the water around the American Falls was frozen, we don’t know the original source of this picture and thus can’t verify the year in which it was taken.
AND NOW YOU KNOW!!!
Praise Jesus/God! His creation testifies to his power. What an awsom GOD!
This is to the Shane guy: you would be 130 something years old if you were alive when Niagara Falls first froze.
i thenk its cool cool kool
think its cool cool coool
hi,
may be that was ice age
regards
I want pictures & dates of the freezed niagra falls which came in the newspapers of New York. If found please send it on pakhale_pratik@yahoo.com
most people says they dont think this happened is it true that it actually froze over ?? write back
[quote comment="6082"]This is to the Shane guy: you would be 130 something years old if you were alive when Niagara Falls first froze.[/quote]
He never said he was alive then. He just said He lived there and then told some history.
Schnug
Don’t apologise for living in the modern world: I think the US is the only place in the world where people still use imperial measurements!
Ironically, Briatain, the home of the Empire after which Imperial measurements are named (the British Empire) doesn’t even use them now!!!
Actually, it’s real…as ha already been established. I myself just yesterday had some 8mm motionion picture film dated 1934 developed showing the Falls completely frozen.
[quote comment="9857"]Actually, it’s real…as ha already been established. I myself just yesterday had some 8mm motionion picture film dated 1934 developed showing the Falls completely frozen.[/quote]
Would you care to send them my way, and I’ll post them with the rest of the pictures?
New photos of a semi-frozen Niagara Falls can be found here.
true or untrue but looks awesome……
wonder who would have taken this
You people who don’t believe it are fools. It happened. Not only do these photos attest to it but the OFFICIAL government & news records support it.
It doesn’t matter if YOU don’t believe it. Reality trumps your ignorance every time.
And to the guy who said that photo #3 must be fake, you’re a fool too. Quality photos were around before the American Civil War. Take a look at Matthew Brady’s work from that era.
Just too many fools in the world.
the picture IS real, but that is not a result of the falls freezing over completely.
“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!”
http://www.niagarafallslive.com/Facts_about_Niagara_Falls.htm
tou can’t tell how deep the falls are because there is something in the bottom right so i think it could be either or
i mean left
Hello…I Googled for Victoria falls, but found your page about the Falls Was Frozen in 1911 at Sean Buckley Blog…and have to say thanks. nice read.
Hi…Man i love reading your blog, interesting posts ! it was a great Monday.
According to National Geographic it froze on 23 Jan 1920
The falls was frozen on the outside but the water was flowing underneath the ice crust or bridge. The volumn of water flowing over the falls is just to great to freeze.
hey those of you that didn’t believe the falls actually frozen too bad. please go back to your history..most importantly lets appreciate the wonders God has done….if lake erie, a huge body of water that also forms part of the falls can freeze right in front of my house, I believe niagara falls can do same.
I’ve actually been in the tunnels behind the falls when they’ve been so filled with ice, they were impassable. The falls themselves weren’t frozen, but the openings behind them were completely blocked (~10 ft high, 15 ft wide perhaps)
Check out the Niagara Falls webcam online,
http://freetube.110mb.com/index.php?view=9bmlhZ3JmYWxscw
Yes,
It is possible for the falls to Freeze over like this, it hasn’t in many years, but, i live about 30 minutes drive from Niagara falls and have pictures of the falls almost frozen completley over in the past 5 years or so.
Do remember, some nights here get around the -35 range in January and Febuary months.
NEver been to the falls, always been fascinated by its beauty. Hoping to take my family there sometime soon. Preferrably not when its frozen!
hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii it’s so funky
hi
i had never been to this falls but its really amazing ,beautiful and threatening.