Can you imagine, Niagara Falls standing still? On March 29th thru March 31th, 1848 this beautiful phenomenon of nature did just that. An ice formation blocked the Niagara River at the entrance blocking the flow of water with with hundreds of thousands of tons of ice for about 40 hours. The residents around the falls woke on March 30th to not the roar of the falls but a silence, which they were not accustomed to.
All the factories and mills were shut down because of the still water, and about 5,000 people came out to see what happened to the falls. They were now able to walk, ride horses and explore the banks and Niagara River bed to discover artifacts of the War of 1812, tomahawks, guns, bayonets, muskets.
This also opened up an opportunity to use explosives to blast rocks below the falls that were a navigation hazard to the still in service today the Maid of the Mist tour boat. The Maid in the Mist started this service in 1846.
On the night of March 31st 1848, the wind shifted and the ice started to melt. Once again the water started flowing and has been ever since.
