First gay marriage in New York under rainbow-colored Niagara Falls

By Elizabeth Flock

July 25, 2011 at 9:40 a.m. EDT

Kitty Lambert, left, dances with Cheryle Rudd after a spiritual ceremony before being married in Niagara Falls, N.Y., Saturday, July 23, 2011. (AP Photo/David Duprey)

After New York's law legalizing same-sex marriage went into effect Sunday, hundreds of couples recited their vows before emerging out of the city courthouse to raucous cheers.

But the first legal wedding in New York happened somewhere a bit quieter: at Niagara Falls, where Kitty Lambert wed Cheryle Rudd. The two grandmothers from Buffalo "have been trying to wed for over a decade," and have five children and 12 grandchildren between them.

The natural wonder was lit up with a rainbow for the occasion, at the request of Mayor Paul Dyster, and was captured by Flickr user Mykelle Nicole. The photo of the falls was tweeted by pop singer/actor Lance Bass, and then shared thousands of times:

Watch a video of Lambert and Rudd’s joyous ceremony below:

See a photo gallery of other newlyweds here.