For over a century the dumping scow was considered an unmovable landmark — then it shifted on Thursday.
ADVERTISEMENTSevere rain and wind has managed to move a massive iron scow that has been stuck on a rocky perch near Niagara Falls since 1918.
For 101 years the dumping scow was considered to be an unmovable landmark — until it dislodged on Thursday, according to Niagara Parks. The dinghy, which has deteriorated over the last century, appeared to have flipped over and spun on its side.
The scow originally broke loose from its tow in on during a dredging expedition in Canada's Niagara River on August 6, 1918, about a mile away from Horseshoe Falls, and drifted into river's midstream near the border of Ontario and New York state. Two men were on board as the ship began to move along toward the edge of the falls.
Gustav Lofberg, 51, and James Harris, 53, opened the scow's bottom dumping doors in order to flood its compartments and slow the ship down before they plunged over the falls, according to Niagara Parks. The two men were marooned in the middle of the river's rapids after the scow got stuck on rocks in the stream.
The U.S. Coast Guard managed to rescue both Harris and Lofberg by the next morning, but salvaging the scow seemed impossible. The old iron boat has remained in the river unperturbed for more than 101 years prior to Halloween.