Obscura Day is an international celebration of curious places happening around the world on March 20, 2010. It is sponsored by Atlas Obscura, a guide to the world’s wonders, curiosities, and esoterica. To find out more about the Atlas and Obscura Day, or to find out how you can host an event in your city, visit ObscuraDay.com, or follow us on Twitter or Facebook.
While you are out exploring, we encourage you to take pictures and tag them on Flickr as Obscura Day and tweet using #obscuraday so we can all watch Obscura Day unfold all over the world.
Name: Sal “The Barber” Maglie Birth Date: April 26, 1917 Place of Birth: Niagara Falls, NY Claim to Fame: Pitcher for the New York Giants, Cleveland Indians, Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Yankees, and St. Louis Cardinals from 1945 to 1958.
He was nicknamed ‘The Barber’ because when he pitched inside to batters he gave them a close shave. He had a very successful baseball career finishing second for the Cy Young Award, and was also second in MVP balloting.
Each Fridays we will be be profiling a notable Niagara Falls native. If you would like to suggest a person to be features in our Famous Friday post, please email us at niagarablog2010@gmail.com
This award-winning course teaches the skills necessary to care for infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers. It emphasizes safety, dealing with emergencies, and first aid basics. Course materials include a student activity book, a certificate suitable for framing, and a wallet-size certificate.
What Every Babysitter Should Know is the creation of a team of child care professionals and trained babysitters—St. John Ambulance instructors, veteran 16-year-old babysitters, 12-year-old rookie babysitters, and moms and dads.
The course takes 6 ½ hours and the informal sessions are designed to be entertaining and educational. Hands-on practice will help build confidence. Our great handbook makes learning fun.
This documentary was filmed to show that although people think Niagara Falls USA is a beautiful place, not many people know of the problems that lie right outside the falls. Poverty, drugs, crime, prostitution, and many more issues are daily problems. Although all of these problems exist, there are lots of great organizations that are looking to make changes in the area. Places like The Hana House, Community Missions, and Heart Love & Soul as well as many more, are all teaming up to make the city of Niagara Falls a place of peace and serenity. Niagara Falls once was a thriving city full of hope, and these organizations are helping bring that hope back to the city.
Video by: David Wilhelm www.urdezign.com ; Co-producer Mansha Pasha
OTTAWA, March 10, 2010 – The Federal Accountability Initiative for Reform (FAIR), Canada’s whistleblower charity, is pleased to announce the appointment of Niagara Parks Commission whistleblower Bob Gale to its Advisory Board.
“I’m proud to be a part of what FAIR is trying to accomplish.” said Gale. “Employees are often the first to know about wrongdoing that threatens the public interest, but in Canada, as I found out, there is little to protect them if they speak out. We need to correct this absurd situation and I’m confident that we will.” more…
One of the Parliament’s ideas to change Canada’s national anthem to something a little more modern. Of course most of us shoot that idea down, it’s our song and you can’t just change it. Then again the idea is still being taken into consideration by a few.
The idea that may have rose after seeing the cultural closing ceremony of the Vancouver Olympics. But with a collection of Canadian literature, art, and music, creating a collage of the colorful background that is Canada.
The generalization was to make the anthem more gender neutral.
This painting, based on a drawing Church made at Niagara in July 1856 and on a sepia photograph touched with colour, was commissioned by the New York art dealer Michael Knoedler in 1866. It may originally have been destined for the Universal Exhibition in Paris, as Church was selected to represent America there. It was bought in 1887 by John S. Kennedy who presented it to his native Scotland. It is the only major example of Church’s work in a European public collection. The painting is currently on display at the National Gallery of Scotland. more…
Name: Frank Pietrangelo
Date: January 24th 1963 Place of Birth: Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
Claim to Fame: NHL goalie for Pittsburgh Penguins Stanley Cup Champions in 1991
Each Fridays we will be be profiling a notable Niagara Falls native. If you would like to suggest a person to be features in our Famous Friday post, please email us at niagarablog2010@gmail.com
The Court of Appeals has ruled in favour of the Whirlpool Jet Boat operator, setting aside a judgment made by a previous judge. The ruling allows the boat operator to use the Melville Street Dock for the purposes of (1) docking space for the loading and unloading of passengers as required; (2) refuelling of boats as permitted by the Applicable law; and (3) overnight docking. Docking space was restricted to a maximum of three boats, though a fourth was allowed to dock if circumstances required. more…
McGuinty Government Nominates Expert In Accounting And Governance
Ontario has nominated business consultant and financial professional, Fay Booker, as the new Chair of the Niagara Parks Commission’s Board of Directors. The selection followed the review and interviews of applicants through an open competitive process.
The nomination is subject to review by the Standing Committee on Government Agencies and approval by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.
As the Chair of the Niagara Parks Commission, Booker would lead the overall strategic direction of the government agency responsible for preserving and enhancing the natural beauty of Niagara Falls and the Niagara River corridor for the enjoyment of current and future visitors while maintaining financial independence. Booker would replace Archie Katzman who has served as interim chair since December 10, 2009. more…
The Top Ten Dirtiest Hotels in Canada decided by Tripadvisor.com based on comments. The top most being one in Niagara Falls, as well as the 7th. So be careful during your next vacationing stay!
The online retailer this week declared Saskatoon as Canada’s most romantic community. Even more odd is the fact Niagara Falls didn’t even make the top 20. Amazon.ca based the list on an analysis of sales data since Jan. 1, 2010 of romance novels, sex and relationship books, romantic comedy DVDs -and Michael Buble CDs.
To be fair, the list is based on a per capita basis in cities with more than 100,000 residents, meaning Niagara Falls wasn’t even eligible. more…
Spc. Alan N. Dikcis, 21, of Niagara Falls, N.Y., died March 5 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 630th Engineer Company (Clearance), 7th Engineer Battalion (Combat Effects), 20th Engineer Brigade (Combat) (Airborne), Fort Drum, N.Y.
ategories judged on personal interview, evening gown, swimwear, charity contribution, public speaking and photogenic appeal.
OTTAWA, March 10, 2010 – The Federal Accountability Initiative for Reform (FAIR), Canada’s whistleblower charity, is pleased to announce the appointment of Niagara Parks Commission whistleblower Bob Gale to its Advisory Board.
One of the Parliament’s ideas to change Canada’s national anthem to something a little more modern. Of course most of us shoot that idea down, it’s our song and you can’t just change it. Then again the idea is still being taken into consideration by a few.
This painting, based on a drawing Church made at Niagara in July 1856 and on a sepia photograph touched with colour, was commissioned by the New York art dealer Michael Knoedler in 1866. It may originally have been destined for the Universal Exhibition in Paris, as Church was selected to represent America there. It was bought in 1887 by John S. Kennedy who presented it to his native Scotland. It is the only major example of Church’s work in a European public collection. The painting is currently on display at the 
