Schoelkopf Power Station
April 12, 2019
Schoelkopf Power Station

Located on the US side of the Niagara River, this mighty power plant collapsed on June 7, 1956. A small seepage started in the back wall which grew until the floor was buckling by 4 p.m. Within an hour the entire back wall collapsed. With a thunderous roar, hundreds of the tons of rock, rubble and concrete fell and destroyed two thirds of the power station. The 40 men working in the plant ran for their lives but one didn't make it out. The plant was demolished as it fell down the deep gorge into the Niagara River. All that remains are the face of a large rock wall and tunnels in the escarpment. Damage was estimated at $100,000,000. After major repair work, the Niagara Mohawk Power company that owned the Schoelkopf plant reopened about one-third of the original structure until the completion of the state-owned Robert Moses Plant about five years later. Today, above the site, is located the Schoelkopf Geological Museum. In 2013, the Maid of the Mist boat company developed the foot of this power plant to dock its boats out of the Niagara River during the winter seasons, to keep them from being destroyed by ice.

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