Sam Patch leaped into the water below with his hands behind his back, he made this magnificent leap as onlookers gasped and applauded as they watched him emerge alive.&nbsp;However, Patch did not stop at only one leap. Rather decided to risk the feat a second time. Discovering a 125 ft platform built on top of two ladders that were fixed on a cliff below Goat Island, Patch once again leaped as thousands of people watched on. This jump lead him to offers from all across the world to see him jump from high falls.

Modern-day photo of Goat Island, the location Sam Patch jumped in 1829.

Sam Patch was eventually recruited to the area of Upstate New York by the innkeepers at Niagara Falls in 1829. His eye for danger landed on the Niagara Falls. He settled on the location of Goat Island, which is a division between two sets of falls (Bridal Veil Falls and Horseshoe Falls). No man in history has attempted this feat, people did not even think it was possible to come out of alive. Sam Patch proved them wrong. 

Goat Island

Niagara Falls, New York

Sam Patch should have given up on Rochester, moved and saw other falls… maybe he would have lived past the age of 29. However, he decided to once again attempt a jump into the Genesee River.Sam Patch had placed himself in eternal fame, but destined himself to an early grave in Charlotte Cemetery. This cemetery is located near where his body was found after jumping from the falls. According to some sources, there was a wooden board placed over his grave that read: "Sam Patch – Such is Fame."

Sam Patch, born in 1807 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, became the first known recorded daredevil in history. Patch and other mill workers often jumped falls into the Blackstone River to pass the time with amusement. But unlike his fellow millhands, Patch sought out more thrill than what he was getting from these small leaps. He started jumping off higher and higher platforms, where the other mill boys dared not to follow. Despite his notoriety later in life, Sam Patch was not always in the business of taking risks. He originally worked in New England traveling from mill to mill in order to find work in a rapidly industrializing economy.

Sam Patch, born in 1807 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, became the first known recorded daredevil in history.&nbsp;Despite his notoriety later in life, Sam Patch was not always in the business of taking risks. He originally worked in New England traveling from mill to mill in order to find work in a rapidly industrializing economy. He even attempted to start his own mill business, but these challenges appeared too daunting for the mill hand. Sam Patch made a second jump from this location due to his anger to Timothy Crane, who was a business changing the social economic status of places like Paterson, New Jersey. Crane planned to build a bridge over the falls, and Patch committed to ruining Crane's opening day.&nbsp; Rumor had it that Crane had Patch locked up in a basement, but unbeknown to him, Patch was let free. So instead of applause at his opening of the bridge, he was meant with shouts as Patch was standing at the South bank of the falls. He apparently said words to the people around him, and then leaped the "straight seventy-foot drop" into the water below him.&nbsp;

Patch soon moved to New Jersey after hearing about employment opportunities. Not long after he arrived, he soon began to continue his leaping. Patch’s first real significant jump was over a ledge in the Passaic Falls, which was over 80 feet tall, in September of 1827. Only in a shirt and underwear, Patch jumped into the river as a nobody but emerged as a somebody. 


Passaic River, The Great Falls

The High Falls of the Genesee River- also known as Upper Falls since it precedes two other falls further downstream- has quite literally fueled Rochester's industrial boom since the earliest days of settlement in the area. In 1789, pioneer and friend of the local Seneca tribe, Ebenezer "Indian" Allan constructed a flour mill about a half-mile south of High Falls which was powered using the water from the Genesee River. The mill was bought by Colonel Nathaniel Rochester in 1811, who then built more using the same water power system as Allan. The numerous mills using the power of High Falls and the Genesee earned Rochester the nickname "Flour City". The Genesee also facilitated major trade in and out of early Rochester, which eventually led to its being the first boomtown in the United States, having effectively doubled its population size in only 10 years by the early to mid-1800's. High Falls are perhaps best known for being the site of a famous daredevil's final jump. 29-year-old Sam Patch had first gained notoriety for being the first of Niagara Falls' daredevils. In October of 1828 he became the first man to leap from the top of the Falls and live, earning him the nickname "The Yankee Leaper". The following year, Patch made the decision to leap from the 96-foot-tall High Falls, expecting it to be a simple task compared to the 125-foot drop of Niagara Falls. Before his jump on the morning of November 6th, he threw his pet bear- named Papa Bruin- off the platform as a part of his act. Below, Papa Bruin emerged- a sign that Patch would be safe. Standing above the churning waters of the Genesee Falls, Patch leaped into the chasm. Onlookers wondered if he lived after the first jump. Several minutes passed before anyone saw Patch emerge from behind the falls. However, after ten minutes, Patch appeared to an uproarious crowd.  Despite the jump being a success, Patch was unsatisfied. He remained in Rochester and began advertising a second jump- this time from a higher platform. The jump was scheduled for November, Friday the 13th, of 1829. An estimated crowd of 8,000 people showed up for the event. Right before the jump, many claimed Patch had entered into a nearby tavern and began drinking. Others believe that the new platform used for the jump- which sat ten feet higher than the previous one- might have contributed to his death. Patch gave a speech and then threw Papa Bruin in- who successfully survived the jump. Sadly, Sam Patch was not as lucky. Some spectators at the time claimed he stumbled off the platform, while others said his dive was as immaculate as the first. Regardless, his impact was not as clean. The crowds waited for Patch to emerge, but when he never did, wild rumors began to circulate. Initially, some thought that Patch was simply hiding in one of the caves behind the Falls and was merely trying to garner attention. These rumors were put to rest the following spring, however, when Patch's frozen body was found downstream. Both of his shoulders had become dislocated when he hit the waters incorrectly, and he drowned. Patch was buried in Charlotte Cemetery, near the mouth of the Genesee. The story of Patch's adventurous life and unfortunate end quickly reached legendary status during the 1800's. President Andrew Jackson's favorite horse was even named after him. Yet despite his fame, for many years Patch's grave was marked only by a simple plank of wood which read "Sam Patch- Such is Life". In the mid-1900's, however, a group of students raised the necessary funds to buy a permanent headstone for the iconic daredevil.

Also known as the Upper Falls of the Genesee River, High Falls was instrumental in facilitating the industrial development of Rochester during the early 1800's. This was thanks to early residents of the area's harnessing of water power for flour mills down the length of the Genesee. This led to Rochester being dubbed "Flour City" during this time period. In November of 1829, High Falls was the site of two historic jumps made by notorious daredevil "The Yankee Leaper", Sam Patch. The latter of these jumps, made on November 13th, was landed incorrectly by Patch and proved to be fatal.

Grave of Sam Patch, First Daredevil in Recorded History

Goat Island

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources