click on photos to enlarge!
above: Jan.12, 2010 - the river (still running underneath) is now iced-over right across, as the two above photos show; the Ice Bridge formed that quickly. How much bigger it gets will depend on the temperature.
above: this is the the same location as the photo previously above, but now looking along the south side of the old Honeymoon Bridge (photo c.late 1890's) towards the U.S. The same footings are seen at the upper right, appearing quite close to the water - and that was before the river's water levels were reduced through the new hydro diversion projects which were still to come in the 1900's. Note the Great Gorge Route streetcar heading into Canada from the States, as well as the horses pulling carriages. The Honeymoon Bridge was built in 1897-98, and owned by the the streetcar-system operator, the IRC.
It's interesting to note that even in 1899 - only a year after the Honeymoon Bridge was built - its abutments had already been threatened by an ice jam that was 80 feet high, which had to be blasted away to protect the bridge. The bridge survived, and its abutments were strengthened the following summer; thus protecting the bridge for almost four decades until that fateful Jan. of 1938.
In the photo above, the abutments, as seen on the U.S. side, are standing on individual piers; in the next four shots below, the same abutments are seen embedded in a mass of rock/concrete/stone - this was most likely the reinforcement work which was done after the 1899 ice threat; and, this would also help date the "circa 1890's" photo above more accurately to be from either 1897 or 1898 (before pier remediation).
above: Jan.22, 2010 - closer look at the old Honeymoon Bridge footings (seen at the centre-right) in relation to the much higher footings of its replacement, the Rainbow Bridge, around 500 feet away to the left.
above: Jan.22, 2010 - closer view of the Honeymoon Bridge footings on the American side; note their relation to the already-forming ice on the river below. To the left, some water still flows from what was originally the discharge tunnel of the old Adams hydro station. 
above: Jan.22, 2010 - closer view of the left (northern) bridge abutment on the U.S. side; the Adams tunnel is at the left. Note the original cut-stone pier, which had once stood on its own, is now only partially visible under the steel footing; the mass now surrounding it to the right is the concrete reinforcement work done after the 1899 ice scare.
above: Jan.22, 2010 - a closer view of the right (southern) abutment of the doomed Honeymoon Bridge on the U.S. side; note the jagged steel plates visible on the abutment, which now sits shifted to the left, as it had been pushed by the ice. Except for the top stone plate (partially still seen at the bottom), the rest of the cut stone pier on the south side is not visible, now embedded in the remedial reinforcement mass. 
above: Mar.1, 2010 - looking under the old Honeymoon Bridge's U.S.-side footings as the thick winter ice melts; the artificially-lowered water-level of the Niagara River reveals rocks which are hidden under water during the summer. The water-level of the lower Niagara River drops due to river-water being diverted from upstream (above the Falls) for hydro-generating purposes; this diversion is increased during winter. Note blue arrow at the bottom left, above the ducks [click photos to enlarge]: that is a chunk of a steel girder remaining from the Honeymoon Bridge, still laying in the water, and occasionally exposed when the water level drops. 
above: this view looks along the south-side of the Honeymoon Bridge, towards Canada, from the U.S. side. The date of this particular photo is not known; but: it is interesting to note that the Oakes Garden (work on which began in late 1935, officially opening on Sept.18, 1937) is clearly visible at the centre-left; and, that the Clifton Gate Memorial Arch (which officially opened Jun.18, 1938; more here) is also visible [it's the white tower right in the centre of the photo, immediately to the left of the bridge entrance]. This is interesting because the Honeymoon Bridge collapsed into the Niagara River on Jan.27, 1938!
Given these known dates, and seeing that the trees in the above shot are still in full-leaf, then I would say this photo could not have been taken any later than about Oct.-Nov. 1937; if that is the case, then it is also interesting to see the extent to which Oakes Gardens and the Clifton Gate Memorial Arch had already taken shape, still in 1937, quite a while before their "official" openings.
So, there was a brief time that visitors, arriving into Canada from the Honeymoon Bridge, did see the Memorial Arch (albeit still 'unofficially opened'/under-construction) standing to their left, on River Rd,. as they exited the bridge!
btw, it looks like there's a small boat in the river along the Canadian side at the bottom left!
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below: Jan.27, 1938 at 4:20 p.m., amazing photo of the Honeymoon Bridge as it collapses into the Niagara River ice sheet. This photo was taken by Frank O. Seed, the only photographer to have captured the actual moment that the bridge fell.
below: Jan.27, 1938 at 4:20 p.m., amazing photo of the Honeymoon Bridge as it collapses into the Niagara River ice sheet. This photo was taken by Frank O. Seed, the only photographer to have captured the actual moment that the bridge fell.
above: probably Jan.27, 1938 or very shortly thereafter: a small crowd gathers on River Rd. at what had been the Honeymoon Bridge entrance, looking down at the now-collapsed bridge, which is seen laying on the ice sheet below. The 'still-not-officially-opened-at-the-time' Clifton Gate Memorial Arch is clearly seen standing at the bottom right, appearing to me to be pretty much completed, although it would still be several months later, on Jun.18, 1938, before its "official" opening. At the bottom left is the rear of the Terminal Tower. 
above: a closer view of the collapsed Honeymoon Bridge laying on the massive Ics Bridge which brought it down. Note the streetcar-wire posts still standing on the deck.
Despite salvage efforts, the fallen bridge sat on the ice until spring, when the ice sheet began to soften up.
On Apr.12, 1938, at 8:20 a.m., as the ice softened, a large part of the bridge, laying on the American side, comprising about half of the steel-arch, sank where it had fallen; shortly therafter, another part closer to the U.S. side sank. These bridge pieces joined the sunken remains of the First Suspension Bridge, which had been located on this very same spot, and which had also collapsed into the river due to a windstorm in 1889.
The bridge portion laying on the Canadian side, astoundingly, did not sink on the same day as the American portion; it remained where it had fallen, still on top of the ice, until the following day; then, rather than sinking on the spot as the ice continued to slowly break up, at about 3:25 p.m. on Apr.13, 1938, the bridge began floating downriver, still on top of the now-moving ice floe!
The bridge was carried downriver on the moving ice until it sank (on Apr.13, 1938, at 4:05 p.m.) in a deep part of the river north of the Schoellkopf power station - see here as the bridge floats by the U.S. power station!
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below: Apr.13, 1938 at about 4:05 pm - this is one of the last photos taken of the Honeymoon Bridge, just before it sank into the Niagara River, directly in front the water treatment facility, which is seen at the right, on the American side. In less than an hour, the ice floe carried the remnants of the bridge almost a mile downriver from where it had collapsed nearly three months earlier. This photo looking out across the river was taken from the area near the end of Otter St. on the Canadian side.
above: same view, Oct.29, 2010 - the imposing old water treatment building is long gone, but the old sunken bridge still remains in front of it, at the bottom of the Niagara River.Photo by R.Bobak
Note, along the U.S. side, the long streak outlined by the snow which runs across the face of the gorge slope: this is the rail right-of-way of the former Great Gorge streetcar route. This circular-route started with the streetcars crossing the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge from Canada, then running south (upriver) on scenic tracks low by the river, slowly rising in elevation as they approached Niagara Falls N.Y.. From there they would cross over the Honeymoon Bridge returning to Canada, then head along the high slope back down to the Queenston bridge. In this photo, the track right of way is clearly seen ascending. Years of rock falls have obliterated much of the old right of way.
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below: Apr.11, 1909, the Ontario Power Company generating station is seen jammed with ice between generating units 2 and 3. Massive river ice in 1909 and in 1938 caused severe damage to this generating station, located down in the gorge on the Canadian side, just above river-level. 
above: a view of the Ontario Power Company's ice-jammed generator floor, taken in Feb.1938, during the same massive ice build-up that had brought down the Honeymoon Bridge in Jan. 1938.
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below: ca.1890 - looking across the ice bridge at the American Falls as "refreshment" (including liquor!) stands/saloons lined the ice surface, while visitors leisurely wandered around without a worry! (See more on the Niagara River Ice Bridge here)
At left is the incline railway on the American side, which led down to the "Shadow of the Rock" tourist concession. Though noted that this photo is "circa 1890", the concession which was here in the early 1890's had a rounded-roof base-building, which was destroyed by a double whammy of ice and fire in 1892; the building in the below photo seems to look more like the hip-roofed chalet-style replacement building, which was torn down after a Jul.6, 1907 accident where a cable on the incline broke, killing one person. With little other clues, this photo could be from between 1894 to 1907.
above: the same view, Jan.9, 2010: an observation tower (built in 1961, later renovated) stands at the left; the rock-cut of the old incline is still clearly visible. The tower provides access to the Maid of the Mist's U.S. dock, a bit of which is seen at the left, just above the winter-water-line of the river. The area behind the tower is called Prospect Point, at the right are the American Falls.
above: Jan.9, 2010 - a closer view of the old incline cut.
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below: another astounding photo by Frank O. Seed - the same photographer who sixteen years earlier was the only person to get that shot (seen earlier above) of the Jan.27, 1938 Honeymoon bridge collapse.
This photo, taken by Mr. Seed on Jul.28, 1954, at 4:50 p.m., shows the actual moment that a 185,000 ton chunk of Prospect Point sheared off the edge of the American Falls. above: Mr. Seed's amazing shot captured the chunk of falling rock in mid-air; and actually shows the water - which seconds ago had been running along the river bed - still pouring off the now-unattached cliff edge!
The older above photos from the Niagara Falls, Ont. Library Archive; the recent photos by R. Bobak.
I hope you enjoyed reading about these aspects of Niagara's past!
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Thanks for visiting Right In Niagara!
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See more on the 2011 Niagara River Ice Bridge here.
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Thanks for visiting Right In Niagara!
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See more on the 2011 Niagara River Ice Bridge here.
See more on the 2009 Niagara River Ice Bridge here.
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