[4] The name was given by Colonel Johannes Glen, the falls referring to a large waterfall in the Hudson River at the southern end of the city.

The then-hamlet was mostly destroyed by fire twice during the latter conflict, forcing the Quakers to abandon the settlement until the war ended in 1783.

Wing's claim to the name of the falls and the hamlet was transferred to Colonel Johannes Glen of Schenectady in 1788, either on collection of a debt, as a result of a game of cards, or in exchange for hosting a party for mutual friends, depending on which local legend is believed.

In 2003, with permission from Queensbury,[9] Glens Falls annexed approximately 49 acres (0.20 km2) of the town.

The city is on the Hudson River, in the Adirondack foothills, at the border of Saratoga County.

[17][18] Glens Falls is also a principal provider of medical services for a vast 2,600-square-mile (6,700 km2) region from Saratoga County to the south, extending northward to the central Adirondacks.

[19] Founded in the summer of 1897 by a group of twelve local physicians, the Glens Falls Hospital was meant to serve the entire Upper Hudson River Valley.

The present structure has been extensively modified, enlarged, and modernized several times to better serve the needs of the community, and it is the region's fast-response trauma center.

Also on Pruyn's Island is Umicore, a Belgium-based company manufacturing silver-based contact materials.

In mid-June 2007, Finch Pruyn & Company announced it had sold all of its assets, including 161,000 acres (652 km2) of forestland in the Adirondacks, to Atlas Holdings of Greenwich, Conn.

Opened in 2003, the theater is named for Mr. Wood, a local entrepreneur and founder of The Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom.

[32] The Glens Falls September 11 Memorial is a tribute to the lives lost on that day, and the first responders.

[33] Historic sites: Events include: Glens Falls has a tradition of minor league hockey.

The highly successful Adirondack Red Wings, four-time Calder Cup champions of the American Hockey League, played in the city from 1979 to 1999.

When the parent Detroit Red Wings disbanded the franchise, it was replaced by the Adirondack IceHawks of the United Hockey League, which was renamed "Frostbite" in 2004 before it folded in 2006.

From 2009 to 2014, the city was the home to the AHL's Adirondack Phantoms, the principal farm team of the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Flames played one season before the AHL underwent a large realignment before the 2015–16 season and the Calgary Flames moved their AHL team to Stockton, California (renamed to Stockton Heat) and moved their ECHL team to Glens Falls, called the Adirondack Thunder.

Crandall Park has a lowland pond, war monuments and recreation facilities bordering the city's Coles' Woods International Ski Trail system Glens Falls Civic Center[50] opened in 1979 and hosts sports and entertainment events in downtown Glens Falls; it includes an arena for sporting events, concerts, family activities, dance, theater and trade shows as well as banquet facilities.

East Field is home to the Glens Falls Dragons, of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League; the Greenjackets semi-pro football team, the second oldest football team in America formed in 1928; and the Glens Falls High School Indians.

[citation needed] Glens Falls, since incorporation as a city in 1908, has had a strong mayor charter.

Departments of the City include: Cemetery, Community, Fire, Police, Public Works, Purchasing, Recreation, Controller, Assessment, Civil Service, Clerk, Water & Sewer, and Buildings and Codes.

Capital District Transportation Authority provides bus service for the city and surrounding communities.

Glens Falls has a radial street pattern originating from its colonial settlement.