The day Niagara Falls ran dry: Here's what it looked like
The thunderous roar of the American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls was silenced for six months in 1969, and photographers captured unique perspectives of the once-in-a-lifetime event.
The American Falls at Niagara Falls, N.Y., has been dried up to little more than a trickle, giving visitors an unusual chance to see the rocks normally hidden from view by the water, June 1969. (AP Photo)
Niagara Falls is one of the most powerful waterfalls in the world, with 4.5 million gallons of water flowing over the American and Bridal Veil Falls every minute.
But in 1969, the waterfall ran dry.
This section is not as big as the Horseshoe Falls, but two major rockfalls left massive boulders at the base of the American Falls, according to History.com. To further study these rockfalls, and potentially remove some of the larger boulders, the International Joint Commission decided to shut off the waterfall for several months, starting on June 9, 1969.
Previously, the only time in recorded history that the water stopped cascading over the famous waterfall was in 1848, when an ice jam upriver briefly blocked the river's flow upstream.
The American Falls at Niagara Falls, N.Y., has been dried up to little more than a trickle, giving visitors an unusual chance to see the rocks normally hidden from view by the water, June 1969. (AP Photo)
The American Falls at Niagara Falls, N.Y., has been dried up to little more than a trickle, giving visitors an unusual chance to see the rocks normally hidden from view by the water, June 1969. (AP Photo)
A 600-foot-wide dam made of rock diverted all of the water to the Horseshoe Falls, allowing crews to work on the American Falls.
"For six months, geologists and engineers studied the rock face and the effects of erosion," Niagara Falls State Park explained on its website. "It was determined that it would be too costly to remove rock at the base of the American Falls, and that nature should take its course."
Workers did some work on the falls, including the use of cement, bolts and tendons to help stabilize the cliffside.
In November of 1969, the dam upriver was removed, allowing water to once again thunder over the American Falls. There have been no significant rockfalls since the work was completed, and the water has flowed over the picturesque landscape continuously ever since.
Niagara Falls in New York state is pictured in Nov. 1969, after the flow of water was turned back on to the falls following repairs made during the summer and fall of 1969. (AP Photo)
