A Tale of Two Historic Cities: Paterson and Washington, D.C.

"The river finding this chasm pours all its water into it headlong from a height, according to guess, of about 80 feet; and all this pouring water must break upon the undermost piece of stone lying in the crevice, which causes a great roaring and foaming, so that persons standing there side by side have to call out loud before they can understand each other. By reason of the breaking of the water, and the wind which the falling water carries with it, there is constantly spray ascending like smoke, which scatters itself like rain."

- Nelson and Shriner, History of Paterson. (The first written account of a journey to the Great Falls dates back to 1680 and describes what the adventurous explorers called "the power and wonder of God":)