Taken from the balcony of the American Hotel (the King George III Inn) around 1935, this photograph captures a moment when Niagara-on-the-Lake’s docks were bustling with ships, visitors and fishermen. Commercial fishing boats in the basin highlight a time when local fishermen carried on their family tradition, setting nets offshore for whitefish, pickerel and sturgeon. The Cayuga regularly docked in NOTL as it did the day this image was captured. Known as “the ship of romance,” it once brought millions of passengers to NOTL between 1906 and 1957. Though the bustling shipping and commercial fishing eras have ended, this image offers a vivid glimpse into the lively past of this now-quiet corner in town.