Niagara Falls and Lockport have always “enjoyed” a rivalry, sometimes subtle, sometimes marked with open hostility. The same was true in Niagara County’s earliest days. In 1806, pioneers such as Augustus J. Porter, who was probably the first bona fide settler of the Falls, saw the possibility of using water power to spark industrial growth, and acquired much of the land nearby. He named the ensuing community “Manchester,” after the industrial city of the same name in England. In spite of its namesake, Manchester grew slowly and was soon out paced by the Erie Canal community of Lockport that began to boom after 1821.

The newsprint for Lockport’s first newspaper, the “Lockport Observatory”, was actually manufactured on Bath Island (later called Green Island) in the Falls in the 1820s, and was transported to Lockport by horseback to be used to print the paper. Niagara Falls didn’t print its own newspaper until 1836 with the publication of the “Niagara Falls Journal.” Setting some of their differences aside, the villages of Lockport and Niagara Falls were first connected by railroad in 1836 with the opening of the “Strap Railroad.” At first, horse-drawn carriages “road the rails” to make the trek, and later, a locomotive was manufactured in Lockport and dubbed the “tea kettle on wheels.” Niagara Falls chartered its first bank, the “Bank of Niagara Falls,” in 1836. However, Lockport held the distinction as the site of the first bank in Niagara County with the “Niagara County National Bank” opening in 1828 on Market Street. (The building still remains today.)

It wasn’t until 1848 when the Village of Niagara Falls was formally incorporated that the community began to make real progress. At that time, a company was formed to erect the first bridge across the Niagara River. Up to that time, the Porter family operated ferries using oars as the only means available to cross the river. In still another example of Lockport - Niagara Falls rivalry, even this fledgling ferry service was a bone of contention and the following commentary appeared in the “Niagara Democrat” of Lockport in 1837. “Peter B. Porter, Jr., a member of a family of immense wealth, (is still) charging 25 cents for a view of the Falls and (is) also a monopolist of the ferriage across the river at 25 cents.”

Douglas Farley, Director
Erie Canal Discover Center
24 Church St.
Lockport NY 14094
716.439.0431
CanalDiscovery@aol.com
www.NiagaraHistory.org