Small rowboats were the first to operate as ferries across the Niagara River below the Falls, piloting passengers as early as 1834. By 1846, however, it became apparent that bigger and better craft could turn a profit transporting people and luggage, mail and cargo. So in that year the first steamboat ferry was launched. She was christened Maid of the Mist. Large enough to carry a stagecoach and team of four horses, the craft appeared rather clumsy.
The ferry did well until 1848, when construction of a suspension bridge dramatically curtailed business. It was then that the owners recast the Maid of the Mist's role as a sightseeing venture and began making the trips close to the Falls that continue to this day. The tourist trade flourished, and a second Maid of the Mist was built in 1854.
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