Thomas Barnett (December 4, 1799 – 1890) was a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

proprietor Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different ...

, collector and

innkeeper Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accomm ...

who managed museums and other tourist attractions in

Niagara Falls, Ontario Niagara Falls is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is on the western bank of the Niagara River in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario, with a population of 88,071 at the 2016 census. It is part of the St. Catharines - Niagara Census M ...

. Barnett was born near

Birmingham, England Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

and moved to Canada in the 1820s.

Establishment

Barnett is credited for having built the first substantial building in the area now known as 'The Front' at Niagara Falls, Canada. He also erected a museum in 1827 near the edge of the Canadian

Horseshoe Falls Horseshoe Falls is the largest of the three waterfalls that collectively form Niagara Falls on the Niagara River along the Canada–United States border. Approximately 90% of the Niagara River, after diversions for hydropower generation, flows ...

. This was followed by the construction of a second, more elaborate museum in the early 1840s at another location. It was at this museum that he boasted over "5,000 specimens on display", per an undated report:

Competition

Barnett faced stiff competition from Buffalo native,

Saul Davis Saul Henry "Rareback" Davis (February 22, 1901 – February 8, 1994) was an American baseball shortstop in the Negro leagues The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a less ...

for over 30 years from 1844 to 1877. Davis built the Prospect House next to Barnett's second museum in 1844; then in 1853 Davis built another structure, Table Rock House, next to Barnett's original museum. A competition continued between the business rivals for the next 24 years. Visitors were harassed, while competing stairways to the river's edge were destroyed by fire, explosives and vandalism. In June 1870 there was a

homicide Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...

victimizing one of Barnett's employees.

The downfall and aftermath

Barnett was criticized for his son Sidney's assault charge in connection with the homicide and, shortly thereafter, began to have financial problems. In a desperate effort to attract the attention of

tourists Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mo ...

and gain financial windfall, he staged two events, which ended in total fiasco. James Butler as "Wild Bill" Hickok was to be the focus of a "Great Buffalo Hunt" promoted by Barnett in August 1872. Despite advance

publicity In marketing, publicity is the public visibility or awareness for any product, service, person or organization (company, charity, etc.). It may also refer to the movement of information from its source to the general public, often (but not always) ...

and hopes for fifty thousand in attendance, the event was largely considered a failure entertainment wise. As a result, Barnett realized a loss of $20,000.(''approximately $700,000 in 2007 U.S. dollars'') In 1877, all of Barnett's

riverfront A riverfront is a region along a river. Often in larger cities that are traversed or bordered by one or more rivers, the riverfront is lined with marinas, docks, cafes, museums, parks, or minor attractions. Today many riverfronts are a staple o ...

properties and contents were auctioned off. Barnett left the area soon after. Saul Davis, was the purchaser of the properties and owned them until the

Niagara Parks Commission The Niagara Parks Commission, commonly shortened to Niagara Parks, is an agency of the Government of Ontario which maintains the Ontario shoreline of the Niagara River. History The Commission was founded in 1885 and charged with preserving and ...

was established in 1887, taking over operation of the area of land bordering Niagara Falls known as 'The Front'. The museum could no longer be held there.Berton, Pierre: "Niagara: A History Of The Falls", p. 172. McClelland & Stewart, Inc. (1992) The collection found a home on the American side of Niagara Falls until that property was taken over for parking. Eventually the collection that had begun with Barnett's returned to Canada to be displayed at the

Niagara Falls Museum The Niagara Falls Museum was founded by Thomas Barnett, an Englishman from Birmingham in 1827. It is best known as the oldest Canadian museum and for having housed the mummy of Ramesses I for 140 years before its return to Egypt in 2003. The buil ...

, billed as "North America's Oldest Museum" (north of the present-day Rainbow Bridge) where it was located until the late 1990s.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnett, Thomas 1799 births 1890 deaths Innkeepers Pre-Confederation Ontario people People from Birmingham, West Midlands