As early as 1845, William Hamilton Merritt, the man who planned and promoted the first Welland Canal, saw the need for a bridge across the Niagara Gorge into the United States. After years of meetings, charters were received by two new organizations, the Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge Company (Canada) and the International Bridge Company (United States) to begin work.

The first problem was how to establish a link over the gorge. A kite-flying contest was proposed, and the first successful kite was flown by an American boy who had taken a ferry boat across the Niagara River to the Canadian side to take advantage of the prevailing winds. Stronger cables were pulled across the kite string, and eventually wooden towers were erected with a wire cable between them. Charles Ellett designed a metal basket to carry workmen and supplies back and forth. The enterprising Ellett also charged tourists $1 to take the basket trip across the river. 

Construction was completed by July 1848. As reported in the Boston Patriot, “…the architect and builder, Mr. Ellet, drove a horse and carriage across. I had the good fortune to be a witness to this noble feat … The bridge at a distance does not look larger comparatively than a piece of tape, or rather resembles a ribband stretched from shore to shore, with Liliputians passing to and fro.” (Quote from “Bridges over the Niagara Gorge” by George A. Seibel.)

The Suspension Bridge closed in 1855, replaced by a Railway Suspension Bridge that accomodated trains as well as carriages. Today, the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge is close to the area of the first suspension bridge.