Publisher Description

This book portrays Niagara Falls as it once was between the mid-1800s to the late 1960s. Once a small tourist town, a great industrial city was built based upon the very thing that first attracted visitors; the Falls became a revolutionary source of hydroelectricity. After World War II, however, the city's industries gradually declined and, one by one, relocated to other parts of the United States. The late 1950s and 1960s show a paradoxical time for the city. An immense new power station was constructed immediately north of the city, while "urban renewal" methodically destroyed the city's beloved, albeit by then grossly neglected, Falls Street business district, leaving behind a confused patchwork of vacant lots.

Author Biography

Daniel Dumych is a local history specialist in the Niagara Falls Public Library. He has written several local interest books, and gives frequent talks on the area's hydroelectric and industrial history. Mr. Dumych has also written for local newspapers and has appeared on ABC TV's "Good Morning America" and Japan's NHK Television. He has compiled this fascinating pictorial history from the Local History Collection, the archives of the Niagara Falls Public Library, and from private collections.

Long Description

This book portrays Niagara Falls as it once was between the mid-1800s to the late 1960s. Once a small tourist town, a great industrial city was built based upon the very thing that first attracted visitors; the Falls became a revolutionary source of hydroelectricity. After World War II, however, the cityas industries gradually declined and, one by one, relocated to other parts of the United States. The late 1950s and 1960s show a paradoxical time for the city. An immense new power station was constructed immediately north of the city, while aurban renewala methodically destroyed the cityas beloved, albeit by then grossly neglected, Falls Street business district, leaving behind a confused patchwork of vacant lots.

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