Ebook: Inventing Niagara: Beauty, Power, and Lies

Americans call Niagara Falls a natural wonder, but the Falls aren't very natural anymore. In fact, they are a study in artifice. Water diverted, riverbed reshaped, brink stabilized and landscape redesigned, the Falls are more a monument to man's meddling than to nature's strength. Held up as an example of something real, they are hemmed in with fakery -- waxworks, haunted houses, IMAX films and ersatz Indian tales. A symbol of American manifest destiny, they are shared politely with Canada. Emblem of nature's power, they are completely human-controlled. Archetype of natural beauty, they belie an ugly environmental legacy still bubbling up from below. On every level, Niagara Falls is a monument to how America falsifies nature, reshaping its contours and redirecting its force while claiming to submit to its will. Combining history, reportage and personal narrative, -- Inventing Niagara shows us how understanding the cultural history of nature might help us rethink our place in it today.;Intro; Cover; Colophon; ALSO BY GINGER STRAND; Title Page; Copyright; Dedication; Contents; Introduction DOWN THE MEMORY HOLE; One WHITE MAN'S FANCY, RED MAN'S FACT; Two THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD; Three SKIPPER THE TWO-LEGGED DOG; Four THE OTHER SIDE OF JORDAN; Five FREE NIAGARA; Six KING OF POWER, QUEEN OF BEAUTY; Seven SENTIMENT IN LIQUID FORM; Eight THE BOMB AND TOM BROKAW'S DESK; Nine BOULEVARD OF BROKEN DREAMS; Epilogue THE VOICE OF THE LANDSCAPE; Sources and Acknowledgments; Photographic Insert