Then: Rapids Hotel and Tavern

In the early 20th Century, the Dunkirk Seed Company occupied a prime spot on River Road near Ferguson Street, overlooking the Niagara Gorge. By the early 1930s, the Niagara Seed Company was located there.

In 1942, the beautiful location was finally used for accommodation, with the opening of the Rapids Restaurant and Hotel. The Malkewich family purchased it in 1947, and a series of expansions followed. The Rapids Tavern and Motor Hotel boasted an elegant, panelled Cedar Room, with a bar and seating, an elegant ballroom/dining room, a new entranceway, and broadloom carpet throughout.

Now: River Road Retirement Residence

Best Western operated the facility for many years, and today is has been refurbished as the River Road Retirement Residence.

Niagara Falls Public Library. 2017. Niagara Falls - Then & Now: A Photographic Journey Through The Years. Rapids Hotel and Tavern/River Road Retirement Residence

Niagara Falls Then and Now
A collaborative project
Niagara Falls Museums - Niagara Falls Public Library - Dept. of Geography and Tourism Studies,Brock University.
Original newspaper series by Sherman Zavitz, Official Historian for the City of Niagara Falls from 1994 - 2019.

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