Buffalo City HallMcKinley Memorial. President William McKinley was assassinated in Buffalo in 1901.The Liberty Building. Each of the two towers is topped by a replica Statue of Liberty.Buffalo skyline from the east.Of course, in Buffalo you don’t have to go far before you see a buffalo of some kind. This is at the front door of out hotel.…in front of a restaurant…… apartment building…… even on street signs!
Lake Ontario
Here we are at Lake Ontario, first of the five we will see this trip!Lake Ontario. Beautiful clear morning. Lake Ontario is the smallest Great Lake.Looking across Lake Ontario at Toronto, 27 miles away!Ship on Lake Ontario.
Old Fort Niagara
We took a tour of Old Fort Niagara, a once-crucial fort.Old Niagara Lighthouse, the first lighthouse on the Great Lakes.This location at the mouth of the Niagara River into Lake Ontario, was crucial to Colonial shipping in all the Great Lakes. Ships had to pass through here before they could continue to Lake Erie, and on to the rest. The French built the fort in 1727; the British took it from the French in 1759 during the French and Ind1an War, and the United States took it from the British during the American Revolution. There is much history of Fort Niagara if you are interested, it would be some fun research to do.This is the reconstructed US flag that the British took from the fort during the War of 1812. The dark areas are the original fragments of the 1815 flag. Notice there are 15 stripes. It was later that Congress changed the flag makeup to maintain 13 stripes – until then, a stripe was added to the flag whenever a state was added to the US>Fortifications at the fort.This is a cannonball oven. A cannonball would be dropped into the oven until it got really hot. It would then roll though a track and come out on the other side…The extremely red-hot cannonball would come out of this hole. It would be picked up with tongs and rushed up the steps and put in the cannon. When fired, the cannonball (if it hit its target) would burn whatever it hit. This is the “castle” that was completed in 1727. The French made an agreement with the Seneca leaders that the French would not build a fort but a facility for trade. The French lied. This was a fort in disguise – the top floor dormer windows extended out over past the roof line so the French could attack from above. Several other clues convinced the Seneca that they were lied to – a moat with a draw bridge, and a well was inside the front door!The castle, the oldest building on the Great Lakes.Just inside the middle front door, a well. If you are able, zoom in on the portrait – and see Louis XIV.Barracks inside the castle.A hallway – this building had a “Game of Thrones” vibe.Trade Room merchant explaining his wares. Beaver furs were the most valuable product that Europeans wanted from this trade route.Musket demonstration.Woman at work.Northern redoubt.Fortifications.Southern redoubt, complete with drawbridge.Canoe hewn from a tree.
Niagara Falls NY
Niagara River, Niagara Gorge. Beautiful aqua-hued water.This is a “must-see” in Niagara Falls – The Prophet Isaiah’s Second Coming House! These designs have been meticulously placed. This house is in the middle of a plain, kind-of run-down neighborhood.
The Falls
Our very first look at Niagara Falls. The American Falls are nearest, The Canadian Falls in the distance. These pictures cannot do justice in any way to the awesomeness of Niagara Falls. I took many videos of the falls from various angles, and we would love to show them to you!This is a Maid of the Mist boat. We got on a boat just like this one.The American Falls from the boat.Approaching the Canadian (Horseshoe) Falls on the boat.Getting closer to Horseshoe Falls… We got very close, but I took a lot of video rather than pictures. You have got to see them!We were in a boat just like this one, and we went in even further into the mist! You couldn’t see out of the mist!Rainbow Bridge. We walked across this bridge to and from Canada.Niagara Falls, Canada. Skylon Tower is the tall tower on the right.The Canada – US border over the Niagara River.American Falls from Canada, ground level.Horseshoe Falls from Canada, ground level.Skylon Tower in Niagara Falls, Canada. The observation deck here is 520 feet tall. We ate dinner here in the revolving restaurant, and we had a beautiful view all around!American Falls from 520 feet high.Canadian Falls from 520 feet highBuffalo skyline from the top of the tower.Niagara Falls, Canada has much beautiful landscaping everywhere.Statue of King George V!.
