About 700 years ago, Niagara Falls separated into three distinct falls, the American Falls, the Bridal Veil Falls, and the Horseshoe Falls. As time passed, the water tumbling over the cliff edge eroded the soft layer of shale beneath the tougher Lockport Dolostone caprock and formed a "cave" behind the Bridal Veil Falls. Its size was estimated to be 120 feet wide, 100 feet high, and 50 feet deep (36.6 meters x 30.5 meters x 15.2 meters).Joseph Ingraham discovered the cave in 1834 and described it in his guidebook, "A Manual for the Use of Visitors to the Falls of Niagara." Ingraham suggested the cave be named "The Cave of the Winds" because drafts of air caused by the falling water created a windy atmosphere inside. Visitors soon began exploring the area. In 1920, after the ledge of rock that formed the cave broke free of the gorge wall and fell into the river, walkways had to be rerouted and access to the cave was no longer permitted. Remedial work on the face of the cliff has totally eliminated former traces of the cave.
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