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The Niagara Portage: Gateway to the West:
During the 18th century, the Niagara Portage provided one of the great access points in the interior of North America. Here, travelers from the east could reach the upper Great Lakes after a relatively short passage around Niagara Falls.
Fort Niagara controlled this strategically vital portage. Travelers could begin their journey by land at the fort, or venture seven miles upriver and go ashore at the Lower Landing (Lewiston, New York). In either case, they first had to pass under the guns of Fort Niagara.
The portage road left the main gate at Fort Niagara and followed the Niagara River until the reached the Lower Landing. Then it climbed the steep Niagara escarpments and continued south over relatively level terrain to the Upper Landing above Niagara Falls. There, travelers reentered the Niagara River and continued their voyage to the west. |