War of 1812 Bicentennial Peace Garden Map unveiled

Five New York State regional tourism offices, in collaboration with the International Peace Garden Foundation, unveiled a new trail map today pinpointing 17 historical sites across the state and three in Ontario, Canada. The gardens commemorate 200 years of peace between Canada and the U.S. and will be permanent sites.

The full-color map identifies specific locations of each peace garden, as well as providing a detailed look into their historic significance. Each region highlights major attractions that complement visits to the gardens. The Niagara Tourism and Convention Corp. collaborated with the count tourism offices from Erie, Genesee, Monroe, Wayne and Oswego counties on this project.

The map is fully integrated with social media and contains a QR code that takes the visitor to the dedicated website for the trail (www.1812.ipgf.org). There, the visitor will find dedicated pages for each peace garden highlighting special events, area attractions, images, navigation directions and much more. The trail map is also available online at www.ipgf.org.

A special audio component allows visitors to dial in at any point to obtain more detailed information on each site. Many of the sites will display interpretive storyboards. All gardens are scheduled to be in bloom by spring and will bloom annually May to October. They are open to the public with free admission. Special arrangements can be made for group arrivals by calling in advance.

Whether traveling as a group by motor coach, or as a family by car, this trail map provides a comprehensive guide to achieving the best possible visitor experience.

The Bicentennial Peace Gardens are permanent fixtures in these communities. Special programming is being developed around each garden to include concerts, art shows, re-enactments, festivals and events.

The International Peace Garden Foundation is the umbrella organization coordinating the development of the trail. Some of the gardens along the trail are "Honorary International Peace Gardens." They contain special artwork and have a more extensive landscape design. These gardens are identified on the map.

The International Peace Garden Foundation is a not-for-profit organization established in 1992 to honor countries for their peacekeeping achievements and to develop peace gardens worldwide. More information can be obtained at www.ipgf.org.

In Niagara County, peace gardens can be found in Lewiston, Youngstown and at Niagara University.