User:GeeJo/Sandbox/Carlisle Graham

On July 11th 1886, Niagara Falls witnessed its first barrel stunt. Carlisle D. Graham, an English cooper (barrel maker) who had recently immigrated to Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA came to Niagara Falls. Graham had constructed a five and a half foot barrel of oaken staves and handmade iron hoops for his widely advertised trip.

On Sunday July 11th 1886 during the early afternoon, Graham began his trip from what is now the Whirlpool Bridge through the great gorge rapids and the whirlpool. Graham stood six feet tall had to stoop over once inside the barrel to allow the water tight lid to be screwed into place. He was completely encased in a waterproof canvas sheath with the exception of his two arms which allowed Graham to hold onto inside mounted metal handles. The initial trip took 30 minutes. Graham survived but had become extremely ill and dizzy from the ride.

This led Graham to announce that on August 19th 1886 he would make a second trip. In this trip he would keep his head outside of the barrel. On August 8th 1886, before Graham could undertake this stunt, two fellow shipmates George Hazlett and William Potts successfully conquered this same stretch of river using Grahams barrel. Both survived uninjured.

Carlisle Graham made his second trip as scheduled on August 19th 1886. Graham survived but leaving his head outside the barrel resulted in Graham sustaining hearing impaired. On August 18th 1886, the day before Graham's second trip, James Scott, of Lewiston, New York attempted to swim the rapids and lost his life.

In November 1886, George Hazlett and his girlfriend Sadie Allen of Buffalo, New York rode the barrel together through the rapids and the whirlpool without incident.

Graham made his third trip through the rapids on June 15th 1887 and his fourth trip on August 25th 1889 in a newly designed seven foot long barrel.

Now famous, Graham announced that he would ride his barrel over the falls but did not carry out his plan. On July 14th 1901, Graham made his fifth trip through the whirlpool rapids. During this trip he nearly suffocated to death after getting caught in a whirlpool eddy for twenty minutes.

On September 6th 1901, Graham loaned his barrel to Martha Wagenfuhrer of Buffalo, New York. Miss Wagenfuhrer became the first woman to successfully navigate the rapids and whirlpool alone. On September 7th 1901, Graham arranged a double performance with friend Maude Willard of Canton, Ohio. Willard would ride the barrel through the rapids to the Whirlpool and both she and Graham would swim the rest of the way to Lewiston. Willard rode Graham's barrel through the rapids then was caught in the whirlpool for several hours before she could be rescued. Willard was found dead of suffocation. She had taken her pet fox terrier along with her and the dogs nose had become stuck in the barrels only air hole.

On July 17th 1905, Graham swam a race in the lower rapids below the Whirlpool to Lewiston with William J. Glover Jr. of Baltimore Maryland. Glover won the race. Glover was 32 years old and Graham was 45 years old. Both wore life preservers and neck braces. Graham's date of death is unknown. He is buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Niagara Falls, New York.