Queen of the Falls

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Researching Mrs. Taylor’s life provided details that made it clear that her story was not one that fit into a conventional narrative of the determined underdog who triumphs over the challenges and obstacles placed before him or her, and emerges with admiration and rich rewards. Annie’s story was more complicated than that—and, to me, more interesting. Chris Van Allsburg PARATEXT During the 1950s and 1960s the Soviet space program used dogs for sub-orbital and orbital space flights to determine whether human spaceflight was feasible. In this period, the Soviet Union launched missions with passenger slots for at least 57 dogs. The number of dogs in space is smaller, as some dogs flew more than once. Most survived; the few that died were lost mostly through technical failures, according to the parameters of the test.

The Niagara Falls was used to make people plenty of money, both directly and indirectly. Below is a 1909 advertisement for a boat ride. Another advertisement shows how Niagara was used to sell hydraulic rams. The facts about the Niagara Falls are well known. “The water drops from a height that is as tall as a seventeen-story building.” Fact of the matter is, you’d have to be nutty to even consider going over such falls. Yet that was the idea that appealed so much to Ms. Annie Edson Taylor. A former charm school teacher, Annie was sixty-two years old and in real need of money. In a flash it came to her: Go over the edge of Niagara Falls in a barrel and reap the rewards that come. Efficient, Annie commissioned the barrel she would travel in, and found folks willing to help her carry out the plan. When the time came, everything went without a hitch and best of all Annie lived to tell the tale. Unfortunately, fame and fortune were not in the cards. Folks weren’t interested in hearing an old woman talk about her death-defying adventure, and on more than one occasion she found her barrel stolen or folks taking credit for her own deed. Ten years later a reporter found her and asked for her story again. Annie confessed that she didn’t become rich like she wanted to, but as she said, “That’s what everyone wonders when they see Niagara . . . How close will their courage let them get to it? Well, sir, you can’t get any closer than I got.” Annie Edson Taylor was an American schoolteacher who, on her 63rd birthday, October 24, 1901, became the first person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Her motives were financial but she never made much money from her adventure. An estimated 5,000 bodies were found at the foot of the falls between 1850 and 2011. On average, between 20 and 30 people die going over the falls each year. The majority of deaths are suicides—and most take place from the Canadian Horseshoe Falls, and many are not publicized by officials. List of people who have gone over Niagara Falls

Writers are often told to give a character both a psychological and a moral shortcoming when writing. Van Allsburg decides that Annie was ‘proud’. Like Walter White in Breaking Bad, who ends up washing his students’ cars over summer, Annie is assumed to be too proud to do domestic work. But as I said, I think there’s more to it than that. Interestingly, when it comes time to get inside the barrel, Annie is described as ‘modest’ when she requires the men to turn away. ‘Modest’ is in some ways the inverse of ‘proud’. But perhaps you can be both. Also, sometimes ‘modest’ refers only to the wish not to display yourself in an exposing manner, which might be another outworking of ‘proud’. DESIRE There remained many open fields and streams and ponds where a boy could catch minnows and frogs, or see a firefly at night. It was about a mile and a half to Breton Downs School, which Chris walked to every day and attended until 6th grade, when the Van Allsburg family moved again.

Considering that this is a work of nonfiction, it seems odd to say that the book this reminded me of the most was Shaun Tan’s The Arrival. Yet both books take realistic pictures and use their sepia-toned worlds to inform our own. That said, the book that would probably pair better in terms of subject matter would have to be the Julie Cummins title Women Daredevils: Thrills Chills and Frills (in which Annie does indeed make an appearance). I’ve always loved Van Allsburg’s magical realism fantasies, but this new venture into reality itself is so appealing that I can only hope that he continues in this vein for some time. A book that honors its subject and grants her posthumous dignity. Legend of the White Canoe“, 1909, created just 8 years after Annie tumbled over Niagara Falls. Illustration is for a postcard, I think by Frank Vincent DuMond. Franz Stassen made four portfolios of illustrations for Wagner’s Ring operas waterfall Chris was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on June 18, 1949, the second child of Doris Christiansen Van Allsburg and Richard Van Allsburg. His sister Karen was born in 1947. The only woman who ever made the trip through the rapids is Miss Sadie Allen. The date of her trip was November 28th, 1886, and her companion was George Harlett, who, on August 8th of the same year, had been through the rapids with William Potts. They used the same barrel used by Hazlett and Potts. Miss Allen’s trip ended at the whirlpool. “The Heroes of Niagara”, The Wide World Magazine Chris Van Allsburg tells the tale superbly, with his art and his words. Yes, this is a children's book, but one which could be a collectible for the drawings alone (and reinforced binding makes it harder for little hands to tear apart). Annie Edson Taylor did not become famous, because people found it hard to believe a senior citizen (in those days) could survive such a fall. Nevertheless, it was a great feat and she will always be the first of the successful Barrel Riders.But I can understand why she did it. Annie would not have felt invisible at the age of 42. She was running her charm school and had a place in the world. By pretending to the world that she was 42, she was proabably trying to reclaim some of the contentedness she felt at age 42. THE BIG STRUGGLE Fascinating story. Annie Edson Taylor was the first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel in 1901 and she lived. The story is rather interesting. Who was Annie?