Reading an American Identity in Niagara Falls

1959 Words4 Pages

Reading an American Identity in Niagara Falls

Occupying the centre of a vast array of paintings, postcards, books and plays, Niagara Falls has become a national icon. Since American independence, Niagara Falls has “assumed nationalistic meaning as the search for cultural/national symbols fixed on nature for America’s identity” (Irwin, xiv). Those select few who had the opportunity to view the falls in the eighteenth century pointed to its majestic beauty and transcendental nature as proof of America’s greatness. It was not until the construction of railroads in the middle of the nineteenth century however, that the majority of Americans were able to experience the falls first hand. At this time, the quest to find meaning in this natural wonder came to a climax. Niagara Falls became a battleground on which Americans sought to interpret the message they knew that Mother Nature had left for them to discover. As a result, Niagara Falls came to symbolize the importance of marriage, spirituality, and technological advancement in the construction of an American identity.

Although Niagara’s classic honeymoon reputation is often associated with the middle of the twentieth century, this long standing American tradition actually began almost one hundred years before it was advertised as such. Since its “discovery,” newlywed couples from all over North America have flocked to Niagara Falls to consummate their marriage as man and wife. Why did Niagara Falls become the Honeymoon Mecca of America so early on? Part of the answer lies within the onset of the industrial revolution. As mentioned previously, travel innovations such as the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825, allowed upper and middle class Americans to trav...

... middle of paper ...

...but Violent’: The Imaginary Geography

of Niagara Falls in the Nineteenth Century.” Journal of Canadian Studies. 29

(2), 1999. pp 64-85.

Irwin, William. The New Niagara: Tourism, Technology and the Landscape of Niagara

Falls 1776-1917. Pennsylvania: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1996.

Irwin, William. “Niagara and its Wonders.” The New Niagara: Tourism, Technology and

the Landscape of Niagara Falls 1776-1917. Pennsylvania: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1996.

McGreevy, Patrick. Imagining Niagara: The Meaning and Making of Niagara Falls.

Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1994.

McGreevy, Patrick. “Imagining the Future at Niagara Falls.” Annals of the Association

of American Geographers. 77(1), 1987 pp. 48-62.

Percy Rowe, Niagara Falls and Falls. Markham, Ontario: Simon & Schuster Ltd,1976.

More about Reading an American Identity in Niagara Falls

Open Document