Nikola Tesla Monument

Statue of the inventor who harnessed Niagara's power for the modern world

Address 5400 Robinson St, Niagara Falls, ON

The Nikola Tesla Monument stands near Queen Victoria Park, looking out over the falls that the inventor helped harness for the world's first major hydroelectric power project. The statue — a copy of the famous Ivan Meštrović sculpture in Belgrade — shows Tesla seated, looking forward, with a coil of wire in his lap.

The connection between Tesla and Niagara Falls is direct and significant: the Niagara Falls Power Company commissioned Tesla's alternating current system in 1893, and when the power station went online in 1895 it lit up Buffalo, 35 km away — proving for the first time that electricity could be transmitted over significant distances. The hydroelectric industry and the modern power grid both trace their origins to this experiment. The statue is a gift from the Serbian-American community and was unveiled in 2006.

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A story
Tesla's alternating current system was chosen over Edison's direct current for the Niagara Falls power project in 1893 — the largest contract ever awarded at that point. The decision settled the "War of Currents" in Tesla's favour and established AC as the global standard for electrical distribution. The Niagara project proved that electricity could be transmitted over long distances, making the modern power grid possible. Tesla reportedly said that as a boy, seeing a picture of Niagara Falls, he had dreamed of harnessing its power — and then he did.