Indian Falls is a 20-foot curtain waterfall on Tonawanda Creek in the hamlet of Indian Falls, in the town of Pembroke, Genesee County, New York. It sits on private land beside the Indian Falls Log Cabin Restaurant, whose parking lot and deck are the places to see it.
The falls
Tonawanda Creek spreads across a ledge of gray dolomite on the Onondaga Escarpment, a broken, jagged rim typical of karst rock that acidic water slowly dissolves. At full flow the curtain stretches about 115 feet wide. Lidar surveys measure the drop at about 20 feet, though higher tailwater can make it appear shorter.
Getting there
The falls are at the restaurant, 1227 Gilmore Road. From Interstate 90 exit 28A, travel north on NY-77 for under 2 miles, turn left on Akron Road, then turn right on Gilmore Road. Viewing is free from the paved lot, but the lot fills on weekends and the owners discourage parking only to look at the falls. The surrounding land is private and there is no trail to the creek.
When to go
The falls can be seen year-round while the restaurant is open. Flow is moderate and can shrink to a trickle in hot, dry summers.
On site
The parking lot gives views of the top and side of the falls, and the outdoor deck offers a closer angle. Reaching the base is prohibited, and pets are not permitted. The lot is paved; call the restaurant about deck accessibility. In June 2021 the county sheriff investigated the drowning of a Lockport teenager in Tonawanda Creek at Indian Falls.
History and name
The hamlet takes its name from the waterfall, which locals call the Big Falls. This was long Seneca territory, and the area lies in the region of the Tonawanda Reservation. Ely S. Parker, the Seneca leader and Civil War officer whom President Grant made the first Native American Commissioner of Indian Affairs in 1870, was born in 1828 in a log cabin overlooking the falls. The restaurant dates from 1946 and changed hands in 2025.
Nearby
Upper Akron Falls, on Murder Creek, and Akron Falls are each about 4.3 miles away. Jeddo Creek Falls is about 11.4 miles away, and Medina Falls, on Oak Orchard Creek, is about 13.6 miles away.
Distances are straight-line.