Niagara Falls, New York

Niagara Falls is a city located in Niagara County, New York. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 55,593. It is located across the Niagara River from Niagara Falls, Ontario, both named after the famed Niagara Falls which they share. It has been considered part of the Buffalo, New York metro area.

The City of Niagara Falls was incorporated in 1892. Historically, the city was built up around factories that utilized the power of the falling water for energy. Now the downtown area is a park Niagara Falls State Park affording a close-up view of the American, Horseshoe and Bridal Veil Falls. The European intrusion into the area began in the 17th Century with missionaries and explorers. This interaction of the local tribes, already hostile, was rapidly converted to open warfare by the competition for the fur trade.

By the end of the 19th Century, the city was a heavy industrial area, due in no small part to the huge power potential offered by the swiftly-flowing Niagara River. The city still has a strong industrial base, but its location is away from the tourist areas.

While its Canadian twin, Niagara Falls, Ontario began massively building up its tourism industry in the 1990s, allowing for casinos and tall tower hotels, essentially becoming the "Las Vegas of Canada," Niagara Falls, New York did very little. In 2004, the Seneca Nation of Indians opened a casino in the former Niagara County Convention Center, which thereby became sovereign Native American territory in the midst of the city.