The History of Love Canal

The Hooker Chemical Company sold the property to Niagara Falls in 1953. The company's legal team viewed the cell of the property as an opportunity to evade any future responsibility or liability related to the buried chemicals. Residents would often find strange substances in their yards and gardens, but local government agencies insisted that there was no danger. A record amount of snow and rainfall in 1977 and 1978 revealed the ugly truth. Groundwater levels rose dramatically due to melting snow and heavy rains causing the toxic substances underground to literally overflow. Puddles of noxious substances were forming in the basements of people's homes. Trees were turning black and dying.