Niagara: A History of the Falls
by Pierre Berton
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Description
"Niagara Falls has always been more than just a natural wonder. The sublime beauty and awesome power of the great cataract have made it a magnet for statesmen and stuntmen, poets and poseurs, ordinary sightseers and exceptional visionaries. This book traces the history of the Falls and those drawn to it: industrialists who come to harness its power, movie stars who come to garner publicity, photographers who come to test new techniques, and honeymooners who come to start new lives. As Pierre show more Berton shows, the history of the Falls is a chronicle filled with exceptional characters: Charles Blondin, the French daredevil who crossed the Falls on a high wire; John Roebling, the engineer who spanned the Niagara gorge before he built the Brooklyn Bridge; Henry Perky, the inventor of shredded wheat; and Robert Moses, the 'Power Broker' himself."--Jacket. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Pierre Berton (1920-2004), famous popularizer of Canadian history, is my favourite non-fiction author. His telling of the story of Niagara follows all the same patterns as his other great works. Here he takes a James Michener approach, framing a location through multiple generations; yet rather than fictionalizing the story, he lets the true events and people populate the tale. He also keeps his work to a reasonable length. The result is just enough coverage of each related tale for a good story before he's moved on to the next vignette, so I was frequently consulting Wikipedia and other online sources to get the rest.
And you do want to get the rest. What's presented here is a fascinating overview of the earliest explorers and their show more impressions, then the next generation of explorers, then the first generation of visitors, etc. Soon these are joined by the geologists, the engineers, the entrepreneurs, the opportunists, the conservationists, the showmen, the daredevils, the activists - all the facets of human activity in the region are present and touched upon [or nearly: military history is omitted, as the author has covered those events in detail elsewhere]. I was reluctantly pulled forward each time, not quite done with wanting more of the previous section, only to become equally fascinated with the next.
I've been to the Falls two or three times, so I could easily imagine the scenes. This book is understandably not as popular among his works as his others with more national coverage and relevance. But if you've any intention of visiting Niagara Falls yourself, whether again or for the first time, this book provides what is probably the most excellent pre-reading available - not to mention a wonderful introduction to this author. show less
And you do want to get the rest. What's presented here is a fascinating overview of the earliest explorers and their show more impressions, then the next generation of explorers, then the first generation of visitors, etc. Soon these are joined by the geologists, the engineers, the entrepreneurs, the opportunists, the conservationists, the showmen, the daredevils, the activists - all the facets of human activity in the region are present and touched upon [or nearly: military history is omitted, as the author has covered those events in detail elsewhere]. I was reluctantly pulled forward each time, not quite done with wanting more of the previous section, only to become equally fascinated with the next.
I've been to the Falls two or three times, so I could easily imagine the scenes. This book is understandably not as popular among his works as his others with more national coverage and relevance. But if you've any intention of visiting Niagara Falls yourself, whether again or for the first time, this book provides what is probably the most excellent pre-reading available - not to mention a wonderful introduction to this author. show less
Episodic accounts of the site and the people that have made this place what it is today. Con men and sensation seekers have been part of its European history almost from the start. It finishes with the debacle of the Love Canal crime.
The tales varied, but this was quite interesting on the whole.
Probably 3.5 stars.
The tales varied, but this was quite interesting on the whole.
Probably 3.5 stars.
the book was better as we got into the 20th century. too many people trying to beat the falls and become famous and mostly dying.
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Author Information
103+ Works 7,385 Members
Pierre Berton was born in 1920 and raised in the Yukon. He worked in Klondike mining camps during his university years, spending four years in the army, rising from private to captain/instructor at the Royal Military College in Kingston. After the military, Berton went to Vancouver where he began his career at a newspaper. At 21, he was the show more youngest city editor on any Canadian daily. He moved to Toronto in 1947, and at the age of 31 was named managing editor of Maclean's. In 1957 he became a key member of the CBC's public affairs flagship program, Close-Up, and a permanent panelist on Front Page Challenge. He joined The Toronto Star as an associate editor and columnist in 1958, leaving 4 years later in '62 to commence The Pierre Berton Show, which ran until 1973. Since then he has appeared as host and writer on My Country, The Great Debate, Heritage Theatre, and The Secret of My Success. He has received numerous honourary degrees and served as the Chancellor of Yukon College. Berton is also a Companion of the Order of Canada, and has received a Stephen Leacock Medal for Humor in 1959, a Govenor's General Award for The Mysterious North in 1956, Klondike in 1958 and The Last Spike in 1972. Berton has also won a Nellie Award for best public broadcaster in radio in 1978, the Canadian Authors Association Literary Award for non fiction in, 1981 and the Canadian Booksellers Award in 1982. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1992
- People/Characters
- John Roebling; Frederic Church; Blondin; Frederick Law Olmsted; Nikola Tesla; Annie Taylor (show all 10); Harry Oakes; Robert Moses; Lois Gibbs; William Hamilton Merritt
- Important places
- Niagara Falls; Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada; Niagara Falls, New York, USA; Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada
- Epigraph
- "The Indians hold Niagara claims its yearly meed of victims. It may be so. Or does Niagara thus avenge itself on the civilization that has trimmed and tamed its forests and dressed it up in tinsel-coloured lights?" - Lady M... (show all)ary McDowel; Duffus Hardy, Sketches of an American Tour, 1881
- First words
- In the beginning was the ice.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)In spite of mankind's follies and nature's ravages, in spite of scientific intrusion and unexpected catastrophe, in spite of human ambition and catchpenny artifice, the great cataract remains what it has always been, and in the true sense of the word, Sublime.
- Original language
- English
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 227
- Popularity
- 142,954
- Reviews
- 4
- Rating
- (4.02)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 13
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 3
