Fort Niagara State Park is located in the Town of Porter in Niagara County, New York, United States. Historic

Fort Niagara Fort Niagara, also known as Old Fort Niagara, is a fortification originally built by New France to protect its interests in North America, specifically control of access between the Niagara River and Lake Ontario, the easternmost of the Great L ...

is located within the park. The park is northwest of

Youngstown Youngstown is a city in Mahoning County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, 11th-most populous city in Ohio with a population of 60,068 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Mahoning ...

near the northern terminus of the Niagara Scenic Parkway and is in the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area.

History

A brief history of the area now known as Fort Niagara State Park. *1678: Fort Conti is built by French explorers (which burned to the ground less than a year later) *1687: Fort Denonville on the former site of Fort Conti *1726: The French built the two-story “Maison a Machicoulis” (referred to today as the “French Castle”). *1893: A US Coast Guard Station was established on the bank of the Niagara below the Fort which is still in service today *1938: The Officer’s Club building opens, replacing the original structure that was destroyed by fire. The design is inspired by the French Castle in the Old Fort *1940–1943: The 28th Infantry Regiment was moved south to train and Fort Niagara then served as a reception center for new recruits *1941: The Fort was granted from the

State of New York New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...

to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. *1944–1946: Fort Niagara served as a camp for German prisoners of war *1948: Land transferred to the jurisdiction of the New York State Council of Parks to be managed as a state park. *1965–1966: The garrison buildings were demolished; of the 100 buildings on the base, most were demolished.

Amenities

The park offers picnic tables and pavilions, hiking, a playground and 18 soccer fields, a pool, recreation programs, a nature trail, tennis, sledding, snowshoe trails, cross-country skiing, waterfowl hunting in season, fishing and a food concession. There are two boat launches on the lower

Niagara River The Niagara River ( ) flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, forming part of the border between Ontario, Canada, to the west, and New York, United States, to the east. The origin of the river's name is debated. Iroquoian scholar Bruce T ...

. The park includes the Old

Historic Site. Tom Loftin Johnson painted five murals at ''The Officer's Club'' which commemorate the history of the 28th regiment from its founding in 1905. During the summer, a state park naturalist provides nature programs, trail hikes and manages the natural history exhibits in the park's nature center. The skyline of

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, to the north, is visible across

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

from the park on days with clear weather. The tops of the

CN Tower The CN Tower () is a communications and observation tower in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Completed in 1976, it is located in downtown Toronto, built on the former Railway Lands. Its name "CN" referred to Canadian National, the railway co ...

and other skyscrapers can be seen, though the

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

shore itself is hidden below the horizon.

1872 lighthouse

The current lighthouse in Fort Niagara State Park, constructed in 1872, is the third to be built at Fort Niagara. It was constructed by the United States government after the previous wooden one was damaged by a tornado. It is an octagonal limestone tower featuring a storage room at the base, that used to hold oil. The

Fresnel lens A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens (optics), lens which reduces the amount of material required compared to a conventional lens by dividing the lens into a set of concentric annular sections. The simpler Dioptrics, d ...

from the old tower was used and the tower was lit for the first time on June 10, 1872. In 1900 the tower was raised an additional when a watch room was added between the lamp and the limestone tower. Lifting the lamp extended the reach of the light to . Adjacent to the lighthouse is the keeper's quarters which is a colonial-style home that now serves as a private residence. The U.S. Coast Guard ran the light until 1993, when nearby tree overgrowth began to inhibit the light's visibility from the Niagara River and Lake Ontario. A modern steel beacon tower was erected near the Coast Guard station and the Old Fort Niagara Association runs the 1872 tower as a museum and gift shop. The original Fresnel lens is now on display in the Fort's museum.

Recent events

In 2015, as part of Governor Cuomo and

New York State New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...

's plan to invest $72 million in their state parks, $2,500,000 was pledged to modernize the bathhouses at Fort Niagara's swimming areas. Additionally, Fort Niagara will share $600,000 across Artpark, Four Mile Creek State Park, Golden Hill State Park and Wilson-Tuscarora State Park for fishing docks and related fishing access projects.

References

External links