A Brief History of Niagara Falls Daredevils

Niagara Falls daredevils are a different breed. Even though the most well known and longstanding daredevil stunt has been going over the Falls in a barrel, there have also been other equally dangerous stunts at Niagara Falls that have been less publicized. As recent as 2003, Kirk Jones, without body protection of any sort, floated down the falls on his back and miraculously survived without injury.

In fact, during the past twenty years alone, eight people have been killed in daredevil attempts. As of 2007, a total of eleven people had successfully gone over Niagara Falls in a barrel.

Sam Patch

The first acknowledged Niagara Falls daredevil was Sam Patch. In 1829, he went over the Falls twice without courtesy of a barrel or any other protective body covering. His first jump was actually a failed attempt to jump over the Niagara Falls gorge. He plunged into the Falls only when a chain on a ladder broke. He emerged unscathed.

A few days later, he did a second Niagara Falls jump, only this one was intended. Like the first jump, Patch emerged uninjured.

Later that same year, Sam Patch was killed in a failed attempt to go over Rochester, New York's High Falls.

The Great Blondin

In 1859, a French entertainer dubbed "The Great Blondin" walked a tightrope over the Niagara Falls gorge --- several times.

Annie Taylor

In 1901, an unlikely daredevil, 63-year-old schoolteacher Annie Taylor, became the first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel. The barrel was stuffed with a mattress and inflated pillows. She survived and made history.

Additional Niagara Falls stunts

In 1928, Jean Lussier was killed when he attempted to go over Niagara Falls strapped to a 760-pound rubber ball.

In 1960, one of the great Niagara Falls daredevil stunts wasn't a stunt at all. It was an accident. And it wasn't done by a daredevil. It was done by a seven-year-old boy named Roger Woodward, who had fallen into the water from a capsized boat near the top of the falls. He miraculously survived unscathed.

In 1995, Steve Trotter and Lori Martin were the first co-ed team to survive the plunge. They were inside two plastic pickle barrels surrounded by inner tubes.

Also in 1995, a daredevil named Robert Overacker attempted to go over the Falls on a jet ski and was killed.

A final note

Even though there's a daredevil law at Niagara Falls with a $10,000 fine enforced on violators, this hasn't been enough of a deterrent to prevent the bold and foolish.

SOURCES:

"How going over Niagara Falls works", Lee Ann Obringer, How Stuff Works

Cecil Adams, Straight Dope

"Death-defying plunge over Niagara", Chris Marks, The Scotsman