On August 26th, 1886, William Kendall a 24 year old policeman from Boston Massachusetts traveled to Niagara Falls Canada with the intention of swimming the Whirlpool Rapids.
He had wagered $1,000.00 that he would complete his swim, so at around 2.00 p.m. that Sunday afternoon in August he set off into the water from the landing of The Maid of the Mist wearing only a cork life preserver and his bathing trunks.
Almost immediately he was caught in a countercurrent. Crowds watched breathlessly as he was tossed and battered by the rapids. Most believed he would meet an untimely end that day.
Tired and weak William Kendall barely made it to shore where he was rescued and revived. He would later state that the trip had been so horrible that he would never attempt a second crossing…no matter what the wager.
