In 1829-30 Francis Abbott, characterized as the Hermit of Niagara, presented his conspicuous unhappiness to those who would observe him by suspending himself over the cascading waters of the Horseshoe Falls off the Terrapin Rocks bridge: "From the ends of these timbers he would hang by his hands, his body suspended in mid-air over the abyss, exhibiting absolute fearlessness and strength of will" (Porter, 1900).
Francis Abbot, drowned while bathing in the river on June 10th, 1831. A native of England, of Quaker parents, he arrived at the falls in June, 1829, on foot, in a chocolate brown cloak.After a week's stay he became so fascinated with the place that he determined live on Goat Island. He sought seclusion, and wished to erect a hut, but the proprietor (The Porter Family who owned Goat Island) thought it was improper to grant his request. He took a small room in the caretakers house which sat on the present day maintenance building site on Goat Island. In the second winter of his residence, the house changed tenants, at which he left the island and built himself a small cottage on the main shore, about 165 yards up from the American Falls. He was a person of highly cultivated mind and manners, a master of languages, and deeply read in the arts and sciences, and performed on various musical instruments with great taste; his drawings also were very spirited. He had traveled over Europe and parts of the East, and possessed great colloquial powers when inclined to be sociable. Around 1 PM on June 10th 1831 a man on a nearby boat saw Francis Abbot swimming or bathing. He went underwater a few times but then the man did not see Francis come back up for air. Francis Abbot was found 5 days later near the shore of the Niagara Lighthouse. Upon entering his hut after his death,his guitar, violin, flutes, music-books, and portfolio were scattered around in profusion; but not a single written paper of any kind was found to throw the least light on this extraordinary character. ∼Known as the Hermit of Niagara. He arrived at Niagara Falls in June of 1829 and began living in the forest on Goat Island. The island had only one small log cabin that had been previously erected an occupied by a pioneer family before the island was purchased by Peter and Augustus Porter. The cabin had since been abandoned. He had asked the Porters for permission to live on Goat Island but this request was denied. Despite this lack of permission, he took up residence in the cabin. He was the sole resident of Goat Island for the next two years, first at the original cabin and later at a second one he constructed. He became a part of folklore with his daily antics among the tourists. Abbott would entertain the tourists by performing balancing acts on the wooden pier leading to Terrapin Tower at the brink of the Horseshoe Falls and could be seen bathing at the small cascade, later named Hermit's Cascade, just upriver from the Falls. He was said to be of English descent, seemingly well-read and educated. Somewhere around 2 pm on June 30, 1831, he was witnessed by a passing ferryman to enter the water below the American Falls after neatly folding his clothes on shore. He appeared to be bathing. The ferryman saw Abbott go under the water surface and not come back up. A search that day continued for several hours without success. On June 21st, 1831, the body was recovered from the Niagara River near Fort Niagara eleven days after he disappeared. It is unknown whether his death was suicide or accident. Found chiseled into a rock on Luna Island possibly by Abbott was the inscription: "All is Change, Eternal Progress, No Death".
Francis Abbot, drowned while bathing in the river on June 10th, 1831. A native of England, of Quaker parents, he arrived at the falls in June, 1829, on foot, in a chocolate brown cloak.After a week's stay he became so fascinated with the place that he determined live on Goat Island. He sought seclusion, and wished to erect a hut, but the proprietor (The Porter Family who owned Goat Island) thought it was improper to grant his request. He took a small room in the caretakers house which sat on the present day maintenance building site on Goat Island. In the second winter of his residence, the house changed tenants, at which he left the island and built himself a small cottage on the main shore, about 165 yards up from the American Falls. He was a person of highly cultivated mind and manners, a master of languages, and deeply read in the arts and sciences, and performed on various musical instruments with great taste; his drawings also were very spirited. He had traveled over Europe and parts of the East, and possessed great colloquial powers when inclined to be sociable. Around 1 PM on June 10th 1831 a man on a nearby boat saw Francis Abbot swimming or bathing. He went underwater a few times but then the man did not see Francis come back up for air. Francis Abbot was found 5 days later near the shore of the Niagara Lighthouse. Upon entering his hut after his death,his guitar, violin, flutes, music-books, and portfolio were scattered around in profusion; but not a single written paper of any kind was found to throw the least light on this extraordinary character. ∼Known as the Hermit of Niagara. He arrived at Niagara Falls in June of 1829 and began living in the forest on Goat Island. The island had only one small log cabin that had been previously erected an occupied by a pioneer family before the island was purchased by Peter and Augustus Porter. The cabin had since been abandoned. He had asked the Porters for permission to live on Goat Island but this request was denied. Despite this lack of permission, he took up residence in the cabin. He was the sole resident of Goat Island for the next two years, first at the original cabin and later at a second one he constructed. He became a part of folklore with his daily antics among the tourists. Abbott would entertain the tourists by performing balancing acts on the wooden pier leading to Terrapin Tower at the brink of the Horseshoe Falls and could be seen bathing at the small cascade, later named Hermit's Cascade, just upriver from the Falls. He was said to be of English descent, seemingly well-read and educated. Somewhere around 2 pm on June 30, 1831, he was witnessed by a passing ferryman to enter the water below the American Falls after neatly folding his clothes on shore. He appeared to be bathing. The ferryman saw Abbott go under the water surface and not come back up. A search that day continued for several hours without success. On June 21st, 1831, the body was recovered from the Niagara River near Fort Niagara eleven days after he disappeared. It is unknown whether his death was suicide or accident. Found chiseled into a rock on Luna Island possibly by Abbott was the inscription: "All is Change, Eternal Progress, No Death".
In 1829-30 Francis Abbott, characterized as the Hermit of Niagara, presented his conspicuous unhappiness to those who would observe him by suspending himself over the cascading waters of the Horseshoe Falls off the Terrapin Rocks bridge: "From the ends of these timbers he would hang by his hands, his body suspended in mid-air over the abyss, exhibiting absolute fearlessness and strength of will" (Porter, 1900).
Francis Abbot, drowned while bathing in the river on June 10th, 1831. A native of England, of Quaker parents, he arrived at the falls in June, 1829, on foot, in a chocolate brown cloak.After a week's stay he became so fascinated with the place that he determined live on Goat Island. He sought seclusion, and wished to erect a hut, but the proprietor (The Porter Family who owned Goat Island) thought it was improper to grant his request. He took a small room in the caretakers house which sat on the present day maintenance building site on Goat Island. In the second winter of his residence, the house changed tenants, at which he left the island and built himself a small cottage on the main shore, about 165 yards up from the American Falls. He was a person of highly cultivated mind and manners, a master of languages, and deeply read in the arts and sciences, and performed on various musical instruments with great taste; his drawings also were very spirited. He had traveled over Europe and parts of the East, and possessed great colloquial powers when inclined to be sociable. Around 1 PM on June 10th 1831 a man on a nearby boat saw Francis Abbot swimming or bathing. He went underwater a few times but then the man did not see Francis come back up for air. Francis Abbot was found 5 days later near the shore of the Niagara Lighthouse. Upon entering his hut after his death,his guitar, violin, flutes, music-books, and portfolio were scattered around in profusion; but not a single written paper of any kind was found to throw the least light on this extraordinary character. ∼Known as the Hermit of Niagara. He arrived at Niagara Falls in June of 1829 and began living in the forest on Goat Island. The island had only one small log cabin that had been previously erected an occupied by a pioneer family before the island was purchased by Peter and Augustus Porter. The cabin had since been abandoned. He had asked the Porters for permission to live on Goat Island but this request was denied. Despite this lack of permission, he took up residence in the cabin. He was the sole resident of Goat Island for the next two years, first at the original cabin and later at a second one he constructed. He became a part of folklore with his daily antics among the tourists. Abbott would entertain the tourists by performing balancing acts on the wooden pier leading to Terrapin Tower at the brink of the Horseshoe Falls and could be seen bathing at the small cascade, later named Hermit's Cascade, just upriver from the Falls. He was said to be of English descent, seemingly well-read and educated. Somewhere around 2 pm on June 30, 1831, he was witnessed by a passing ferryman to enter the water below the American Falls after neatly folding his clothes on shore. He appeared to be bathing. The ferryman saw Abbott go under the water surface and not come back up. A search that day continued for several hours without success. On June 21st, 1831, the body was recovered from the Niagara River near Fort Niagara eleven days after he disappeared. It is unknown whether his death was suicide or accident. Found chiseled into a rock on Luna Island possibly by Abbott was the inscription: "All is Change, Eternal Progress, No Death".
Francis Abbot, drowned while bathing in the river on June 10th, 1831. A native of England, of Quaker parents, he arrived at the falls in June, 1829, on foot, in a chocolate brown cloak.After a week's stay he became so fascinated with the place that he determined live on Goat Island. He sought seclusion, and wished to erect a hut, but the proprietor (The Porter Family who owned Goat Island) thought it was improper to grant his request. He took a small room in the caretakers house which sat on the present day maintenance building site on Goat Island. In the second winter of his residence, the house changed tenants, at which he left the island and built himself a small cottage on the main shore, about 165 yards up from the American Falls. He was a person of highly cultivated mind and manners, a master of languages, and deeply read in the arts and sciences, and performed on various musical instruments with great taste; his drawings also were very spirited. He had traveled over Europe and parts of the East, and possessed great colloquial powers when inclined to be sociable. Around 1 PM on June 10th 1831 a man on a nearby boat saw Francis Abbot swimming or bathing. He went underwater a few times but then the man did not see Francis come back up for air. Francis Abbot was found 5 days later near the shore of the Niagara Lighthouse. Upon entering his hut after his death,his guitar, violin, flutes, music-books, and portfolio were scattered around in profusion; but not a single written paper of any kind was found to throw the least light on this extraordinary character. ∼Known as the Hermit of Niagara. He arrived at Niagara Falls in June of 1829 and began living in the forest on Goat Island. The island had only one small log cabin that had been previously erected an occupied by a pioneer family before the island was purchased by Peter and Augustus Porter. The cabin had since been abandoned. He had asked the Porters for permission to live on Goat Island but this request was denied. Despite this lack of permission, he took up residence in the cabin. He was the sole resident of Goat Island for the next two years, first at the original cabin and later at a second one he constructed. He became a part of folklore with his daily antics among the tourists. Abbott would entertain the tourists by performing balancing acts on the wooden pier leading to Terrapin Tower at the brink of the Horseshoe Falls and could be seen bathing at the small cascade, later named Hermit's Cascade, just upriver from the Falls. He was said to be of English descent, seemingly well-read and educated. Somewhere around 2 pm on June 30, 1831, he was witnessed by a passing ferryman to enter the water below the American Falls after neatly folding his clothes on shore. He appeared to be bathing. The ferryman saw Abbott go under the water surface and not come back up. A search that day continued for several hours without success. On June 21st, 1831, the body was recovered from the Niagara River near Fort Niagara eleven days after he disappeared. It is unknown whether his death was suicide or accident. Found chiseled into a rock on Luna Island possibly by Abbott was the inscription: "All is Change, Eternal Progress, No Death".
Inscription
Francis Abbott, the Hermit of Niagara
Died June 10, 1831
He died in his 28th year
Gravesite Details
One article states that he was buried in an area of the cemetery used for transients and that the marker was neglected and unreadable.
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