Key+Elements

Journey on the Niagara River.
 * 1) ** * Physical Map ** – A.) Student projects feature a physical map that features all locations on the student journey (minimum of two). B.) Students will highlight the locations on the map and state the names of the selected locations on their journey. If students are focusing on a time other than the present, they should clearly indicate that.

The Niagara River connects the lowest two Great Lakes, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The river originates and flows north from downtown Buffalo 16 miles to Niagara Falls, a stunning 167-foot drop, and then continues to flow 19 miles to Lake Ontario. The entire Niagara River (including the site of the falls), represents an international border between the United States and Canada. The lands surrounding the falls are currently preserved as public parks by the state of New York on the US side and the province of Ontario on the Canadian side.


 * 1) * **Connecting geography to culture** - Students analyze the geography of their selected locations, reporting relevant geographical features and their connection to cultural realities of the past or the present.

The city of Buffalo, NY - my hometown - became a shipping and transportation hub in the 1800's and early 1900's because of its strategic location and **geography**. Located at the northeast end of Lake Erie where the lake flows into the Niagara River, Buffalo's natural geography provides 37 miles of water frontage and one of the best harbors on the Great Lakes.

Buffalo's strategic **geographical** benefits were enhanced by human technology. Buffalo was selected as the western terminus of the Erie Canal - constructed in the 1820's - a 363-mile canal which connected the Hudson River (from Albany, NY) to Buffalo. thereby providing an uninterrupted waterway from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, the American Midwest, and the interior of Canada. Grains and raw materials flowed from the west to the east, while manufactured goods flowed from the east to the west. The development of railroads in the 1840's also impacted Buffalo, strengthening its role as a transportation center and prompting the manufacture of steel in Buffalo. The **geographic** availablilty of iron ore in Minnesota on Lake Superior and coking coal from Pennsylvania on Lake Erie rendered Buffalo a perfect location for steel foundries and manufacturers. This industry was later followed by automobile manufacturing in the early 1920's. The construction of the Peace Bridge over the Niagara River in 1927 connected Buffalo, NY to Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada, thereby rendering Buffalo, NY, the main entrance to Canada for many decades, contributing further to its roles as a transportation hub.


 * Today**, as a result of its history as a shipping/transportation hub, Buffalo remains an international port and a major center of raliroad transportation, handling large quantities of bulk products such as iron ore, limestone, coal, and grain.

As a natural beauty, the falls has attracted tourists from all over the world and for many decades was a popular travel destination for honeymooners.

Niagara Falls generates huge amounts of hydroelectric energy. Some of the Niagara River's water is diverted through underground tunnels and passes through turbines that power a series of electrical generators as it falls on its path to the lower part of the river, thus converting mechanical energy into electrical energy. The force of the falls was first harnessed to generate hydroelectric power at the end of the 1800's when the Niagara Falls Power Company was formed by U.S. investment bankers who hired scientists and engineers to develop a hydroelectric project. The first large-scale hydrolectric plant in the world began generating electric current in 1895. By 1902 power stations at Niagara Falls were producing about one-fifth of all electricity in the US. In the 1920's technological advances allowed for a more affordable means of transmitting power for hundreds of miles. This advance resulted in an electrical network that established the pattern for 20th century electric power.


 * Today**, Niagara is still the largest electricity producer in New York State, with a generating capacity of 2.4 gigawatts (million kilowatts). It continues to draw tourists who are attracted by its natural beauty as well as entertainment options including casinos.


 * 1) ** * Photographs of locations ** – A.) Students include photos of the locations on the journey that feature relevant geographical features of the location. B.) Students describe the photos with detailed information about the relevant geographical features.


 * 1) ** Connecting geography to history ** – Students with an established connection between their journey and historical information will provide the following: A.) a clear description of how, when, and where geographical factors impacted culture; and B). a connection between the historical circumstances and the present day.

SEE "CONNECTING GEOGRAPHY TO CULTURE"


 * 1) ** Connecting geography to literature ** – Students with an established connection between their journey and a work of literature will detail the connection, providing the following: A.) a brief summary of how and why the book’s action took place in the given locations; and B.) a brief summary of how the geographical features of the location impacted the book’s setting.

During my August 2011 visit to Buffalo I was reading //City of Light// by Lauren Belfer. Told in the first person by protagonist Louisa Barrett, the headmistress of an all girls school for the daughters of Buffalo's wealthy industrialists, //City of Light// is a work of historical fiction and mystery that takes place in Buffalo in 1901, at the height of Buffalo's prosperity and importance as a major US city. The year 1901 was significant for the rapid development of hydroelectric power generated by the power of Niagara Falls and the hosting of the Pan American Exposition in Buffalo. //City of Light// addresses the struggle of immigrant workers to unionize to protect themselves from the abuses of industrialists, the opposition to hydroelectric power development at Niagara Falls by religious and conservationist groups, the struggle of African Americans to participate in and benefit from the prosperity of Buffalo and the nation, and the subjugated role of women in that day and age. Througout the book it is clear that the achievements of the Buffalo and Niagara region at that time were largely made possible by the geography of the area, particularly Lake Erie and the powerful force of the Niagara River.


 * 1) ** Connecting geography to personal experience – ** Students with a connection between their locations and personal experiences provide a detailed description of the personal connection to the locations. Students are encouraged to gather information from family or community members and to report that information (attributed to those individuals) in their projects.

I spent five days in my hometown of Buffalo, New York in August 2011 to attend my sister's wedding. In the days leading up to the visit and the visit itself I was reading //City of Light// by Buffalonian Lauren Belfer. Written in 1999 and set in 1901 (the year of the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo). much of the action took place within about ten blocks of my high school OR at Niagara Falls. This reading experience created a renewed sense of appreciation for the history and importance of Buffalo in US history, particularly with regard to Buffalo's role as a port city and transporation hub and Niagara Falls as the site of unprecedented achievement in the generation of hydroelectric power. Both of those achievements are related to geographical factors - namely Lake Erie and the Niagara River. Three family events took place on the shoreline of Lake Erie (a party on the US side, a family gathering on a beach on the Canadian side, and the wedding itself on a beach on the US side). I saw Buffalo and Canada and the waters of Lake Erie and the Niagara River from many different angles and perspectives during the weekend. Finally, during the first few minutes of the flight back to Chicago the pilot announced that he was given the unusual clearance to fly a 360 over Niagara Falls. At the very moment that the plane flew above and around what is considered one of the world's most awesome geographical spectacles, characters in the book were interacting on Goat Island, the island in the Niagara River that separates the Bridal Veil portion of the falls from the Horseshoe Falls. What serendipity!

//ser·en·dip·i·ty//
 * //noun// /ˌserənˈdipitē/  serendipities, plural
 * The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way
 * - a fortunate stroke of //serendipity//
 * - a series of small //serendipities// ||


 * 1) ** * Challenges – ** A.) Students identify past or present challenges or threats to the well-being of the inhabitants of the locations on their journey and indicate whether or not these challenges or threats are related in any way to the geography of the locations. B.) Students will report what efforts are being made to confront these challenges

The bodies of water highlighted in this article - Lake Erie and the Niagara River - are continuing to be polluted by manufacturers today. A New York Times article from September 2009, entitled, Clean Water Laws Are Neglected, at a Cost in Suffering, reports that nearly 40 years after passage of the federal Clean Water Act, polluters continue to violate Clean Water laws on a large scale. Records from the most recent five years indicated more than half a million known violations. State officials have largely ignored illegal dumping, and the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, the federal agency charged with enforcing environmental laws, has often declined to intervene. New York times investigation indicates that approximately 10% of Americans have been exposed to drinking water containing dangerous chemicals. Some of the most frequently detected contaminants have been linked to cancer, birth defects and neurological disorders.

I utilized a database provided with the online version of this article to identify polluters at the two locations on my journal. I discovered that the Sigri Great Lakes Carbon in Niagara Falls, New York (just upstream from Niagara Falls), perpetrated 197 violations but was not fined for any of these violations. I discovered that the Vesuvius Corporation in Lackawanna, New York, perpetrated 334 violations but was not fined for any of these. The Vesuvius Corporation is located close to the home of my sister and close to the beach where my family hosted and celebrated my sister's wedding last month.

Today students and people of all ages can access join and support the activities of environmental action groups to access information and promote positive change. One such organization, the Natural Resources Defense Council - http://www.nrdc.org - with offices around the country including one in Chicago, harnesses the efforts of 300 employees including lawyers, scientists, and policy experts, and 1.3 million members and environmental activists.


 * 1) ** Artwork – ** A.) Students include an image (e.g. photograph, work of visual art, etc.) that is symbolic of each location of their journey. B.) Students provide analysis of the image (e.g. artist information, medium, year created, artist commentary). If the image is the work of an IAMS art student, commentary about the artwork by the student artist is included.

This painting is an artistic rendering by artist Len Tantillo, depicting the junction of Buffalo Creek and the Erie Canal, featuring the world's first grain elevator. Len Tantillo, born and raised in Upstate New York and educated at the Rhode Island School of Design, is known for his historical paintings which are based on archeological artifacts and historical documents.

This painting was created by Marjorie Pesek of Naples, Florida. The painting is called "Niagara Falls" and is from a series of paintings called, "Landmarks." The artist created the term "Layered Imagery" to describe the technique, utilized here, of hand assembling hundred of photographic images into a single detailed work of art that at first glance appears to be an oil painting. Each painting takes several weeks of intense work.