FREE- Niagara River Cruises History Tours June and July are already full but August 6 and 18 and September 1 an 3, 2026. Gratis by NY Power Authority and NY State Canal Corp.
While you can bring your own food and beverages (no alcohol on History cruises), should be in small cooler.
During the tour you will learn about the Canal, Lumber City and other interesting stories of the waterway such as the local buildings, feed stores and lumber yards which were vital to the area’s financial growth. You will be able to not only be on the canal, but you will also hear about the history of the canal and view where the canal originally connected to Buffalo. The view from the vantage point of being on the Erie Canal waters provides a very different and special experience as you will go back in time being on the same waters that the barges were pulled by mules.
Our narrator, Val Cronin, is a lifelong resident of the Tonawanda’s, a Distinguished Toastmaster and a Certified Tourism Ambassador. Val’s buoyant mixture of facts and storytelling makes for a fun history cruise!!
