Listen to Kimiko Hahn performing “Maud Willard and Her Niagara Falls Stunt, 1901”
The barrel with Maud and her dog
shoots into the rapids’ familiar tossing
then to a swirling of strange currents.
Into the whirlpool, they sink from sight,
sucked into its merciless depths.
The barrel with Maud and her dog
then springs from the maelstrom,
courses far from tourists on shore
in the swirling of strange currents.
Now dark–a search light into the gorge
illuminates the thrashing waves and
the barrel with Maud and her dog.
Five hours–the woman’s been imprisoned
in the rolling, revolving waters
till from that strange swirl of currents
the men catch the cask though only the pet
—nose seen in an air hole—leaps out.
The Tale of Daredevil Maud and Her Dog
is still strangely swirling. And current.
Source: Kimiko Hahn, 2026
Kimiko Hahn, New York State Poet Laureate, wrote and performed this poem for the Niagara Falls Poetry Project’s 25th Anniversary, where it was featured at the April 9, 2026 event launching the Poetry Contest. Click here for information about the contest and the event.