The Niagara Heritage Trail is a historic and scenic route running the entire 35 mile Canadian coastline of the Niagara River

Niagara River

The Niagara River flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the Province of Ontario in Canada and New York State in the United States. There are differing theories as to the origin of the name of the river...

 from Fort Erie

Fort Erie

Fort Erie was the first British fort to be constructed as part of a network developed after the Seven Years' War was concluded by the Treaty of Paris at which time all of New France had been ceded to Great Britain...

 northward to Niagara On The Lake. Construction began in stages during the early 1980s, and was completed in 1995.

Along the route, visitors can access the following historical sites:

• Old Fort Erie, site of a major battle in July, 1814 between British troops stationed there and advancing American troops;

• Chippawa Battlefield Park, site of the first major battle on the Canadian side during the War of 1812
  War of 1812
  The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
  
  , and cited by some historians as the birthplace of the modern American Army;

• Sir Adam Beck
  Adam Beck
  Sir Adam Beck was a politician and hydroelectricity advocate who founded the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario.-Biography:...
  
   Generation Stations near Queenston, twin hydroelectric power plants servicing Ontario
  Ontario
  Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
  
   and much of the northeastern United States
  United States
  The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
  
  ;

• MacKenzie Printery, housing Canada's oldest printing press (ca. 1770) and historical home to William Lyon MacKenzie, a government reformist;

• MacFarland House, which housed wounded British and American soldiers jointly during the War of 1812;

• Laura Secord Homestead, historical home of the woman who set out on a historical walk from Queenston, Ontario to the village of Beaverdams, warning British soldiers of an impending American attack in 1814. http://www.niagaraparks.com/heritage/index.php

The trail makes its central heart in Queen Victoria Park

Queen Victoria Park

Queen Victoria Park is the main parkland located in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada opposite the American and Canadian Horseshoe Falls. Established by a Provincial Park Act in 1885 and opened in 1888, the park is operated by the Niagara Parks Commission and is considered the centerpiece of the...

 near the main tourist area, and also passes by attractions such as the Whirlpool Golf Course, Niagara Botanical Gardens, the Butterfly Conservatory, and the Floral clock

Floral clock

A floral clock or flower clock is a large decorative clock set into a flower bed in a park or other public recreation area.The floral clock was a form of carpet bedding set onto an operational clock-face, invented in 1903 by John McHattie of Edinburgh Parks in Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh and...

.