Engineers once made startling discovery when they stopped the flow of Niagara Falls for months

The Niagara Falls are among nature's wonders which have been captivating tourists for centuries for the stunning view created by massive amounts of water falling down its cliffs. But waterfalls are often known to hide something even more intriguing under their scenic beauty, and this well-known tourist attraction is no exception. In 1966, millions of coins that people threw into Niagara Falls to make their wishes come true, were revealed when its flow was blocked by engineers in 1969 for six months, according to The New York Times.

According to Smithsonian Magazine, Niagara Falls formed more than 12,000 years back, when the the Niagara River connected Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The waterfall is situated between Canada's Horseshoe Falls, the American Falls, and the Bridal Veil Falls.

In 1969, the US Army Corps of Engineers decided to pour 27,000 tons of rock upstream to form a dam on the Niagara River. They planned to examine the boulders found at the base of the falls and figure out if it was feasible to remove them.

However, they stumbled upon a whole lot of unexpected stuff when they stopped the flow of 45 million gallons of water that had been crashing down for thousands of years. According to Bright Side, the researchers found coins that people had thrown into the river over the centuries.

But that wasn't all, they also came across two bodies beneath the water, but their identities were not disclosed to the public. The barren cliffs of the dried-out waterfall didn't provide a pleasant view to the tourists either and people who built the tunnels to divert the water from the falls had also made several modifications to the Niagara Falls. A team of excavators even shaved off parts of the Horseshoe Falls to create a visually stunning crest.

“Recent emphasis on environmental values has raised questions about changing natural conditions even for demonstrated natural and measurable social benefits,” the team of engineers wrote in their final report after studying the waterfall and decided to remove the dam, as per the outlet. It is predicted that in the next 15,000 years, the riverbed of Niagara will turn into soft shale and eventually disappear, as per Smithsonian Magazine.

In the 1880s, the Free Niagara Movement had brought together many people who lobbied to create a park around the site. Later, Canada and the United States made a pact to divert 50% of the water from the waterfall through underwater tunnels to hydroelectric turbines during peak tourist seasons in 1950. Several changes were further introduced to the natural structure and at one point historian Daniel Macfarlane dubbed Niagara Falls as a “completely man-made and artificial cataract.” But tourists continued to flock to the falls despite all the modifications and Fortune reported that the area around the waterfall in Ontario had to declare a state of emergency to welcome up to a million visitors for the solar eclipse that took place on April 8, 2024.