"The visual history of Niagara Falls is as rich as the literary history that Pierre Berton has already chronicled in his best-selling book 'Niagara'. The first man to describe this natural wonder, Father Louis Hennepin, in 1768, also provided material for the first drawing of the Falls, an engraving that wildly exaggerated the height of the twin cataracts. Scores of other artists followed to produce a visual treasure trove, showing the Falls in all its moods, in every decade and every season - locked in the ice, half obscured by spray, terrifying in some aspects, beguiling in others. Frederic Church's famous painting, reproduced in these pages, came as the climax to two centuries of remarkable art, the best of which appears in this book. But this s only a small part of the graphic story of Niagara Falls. As the author points out, at least 100 million snapshots are taken here annually by amateur photographers from all over the world. Now, Toronto photographer Paul Casselman has added modern colour photographs to the wealth of archival material gathered for this book by veteran researcher Barbara Scars. In this visual feast, arranged by award-winning designer Frank Newfeld, are some of the first photographs ever made at Niagara - daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, and wet plate studies. The legendary Blondin is here, of course, teetering on his tightrope, and so is Annie Taylor, the first person to go over the Falls in a barrel, shown just as she emerged, bedraggled and disoriented, from her craft. Here, too, are photographs taken at the exact moment a portion of the Niagara escarpment tumbled into the river, crushing the Schoellkopf Power Plant. One of the most dramatic photographs in the book shows the famous Honeymoon Bridge, destroyed by the ravages of nature, lying like a crumpled serpent on the ice of the Niagara River. Other rare photographs show people disporting themselves on the ice bridge directly below the cataract - a romp that was finally banned after three people drowned. The carnival of Clifton Hill is shown in all its dazzling colour, contrasting sharply with the stereoscopic pictures of nineteenth-century ladies in crinolines and bonnets. The story of hydro-electric developments is told graphically with forgotten photographs of the great power palaces long since boarded up or destroyed. Whether you're a visitor to the Falls or simply a lover of dramatic, popular Canadian history, this is a book to keep to enjoy, and to savour." --provided by Goodreads.