The lower falls of the Grand Canyon in Yellowstone are 308 feet tall, twice as tall as Niagara Falls. The amount of water flowing over the falls varies from 63,500 gallons a second to 5,000 gallons a second depending on the season. The Canyon Rhyolite lava flow, which first appeared 590,000 years ago, formed the falls.. Although the canyon and falls are still being shaped by erosion, their current appearance has been the same since the last glaciers melted 10,000 years ago.

James Bridger, one of the first Americans to see Yellowstone and whose epitaph referenced his tendency for exaggeration, described falls that were 1,000 feet high. Nathanial Langford, the first superintendent of Yellowstone Park, was a member of an expedition to explore the lower falls and other areas of Yellowstone, and he published a diary of the exploration in which he affirms some of Bridger’s stories. In his diary, Langford wrote of seeing the lower falls and marveling at the “mighty architecture of nature .”

Over the years, many private individuals attempted to capitalize on the popularity of Yellowstone by operating tourism focused business such as hotels and guided tours. The landscape of the lower falls avoided being marred by hotels, but the government did grant leases for individuals to use the land near the falls as pastures and to set up small stands to sell newspapers, fruit, and other concessions.

Researched, written, and narrated by University of West Florida Public History Student Michael Lawhorne