In June of 1854, the Village of Suspension Bridge (Bellevue) was incorporated. The first village president was Colonel John Fisk. He was an official of the Bellevue Land Company. This village grew from a development around the first suspension bridge. This village was originally known as Bellevue. The Canadian village that developed at the opposite end of this bridge was known as the Village of Elgin.
The Village of Bellevue was commonly known as “Suspension Bridge” or simply “Bridge”. As early as 1891, studies were commissioned to the idea of merging the villages of Bellevue and Niagara Falls.