A number of people have gained notoriety from their stunts, both successful and fatal. The first documented survival of a trip over
Niagara Falls was that of school teacher
Annie Edson Taylor in 1901. Taylor went over the falls in an oak barrel as part of a stunt in an attempt to bring her financial security. Other
daredevil attempts have been made by
Bobby Leach,
Charles Stephens,
Jean Lussier,
Karel Soucek, and
Steve Trotter. In 1903, baseball
Hall of Famer Ed Delahanty died after accidentally going over the falls while intoxicated. Following the death of daredevil William "Red" Hill, Jr. in 1951,
Ontario Premier Leslie Frost issued an
order to the
Niagara Parks Commission to arrest anyone found to be performing stunts at the falls. Both Canadian and American authorities began to issue fines for daredevils at the falls; as of 2011, the fines are $10,000
CAD (approximately $7,700
USD) in Canada, or US$25,000 (approximately $32,800 CAD) in the United States. When the
American Falls was temporarily diverted in 1969, two bodies were found; the identities were not disclosed. There have been no recorded cases of people surviving the trip over the American Falls.
Statistics Between 1958 and 1967, an average of 7.1 people per year went over the falls. From 1978 to 1988, the average was 12.8 per year. Other reports suggest an annual average between 20 and 30. By 1900, approximately 1,000 people were believed to have gone over the falls in acts of suicide. In 2011, it was reported that 5,000 bodies had been recovered from the foot of the falls since 1850. The majority of deaths are suicides, and most take place from the Canadian
Horseshoe Falls. Many of these suicides are not publicized by officials. == Incidents ==