"Built between 1817 and 1825, the original Erie Canal traversed 363 miles from Albany to Buffalo. It was the longest artificial waterway and the greatest public works project in North America. The canal put New York on the map as the Empire State—the leader in population, industry, and economic strength. It transformed New York City into the nation's principal seaport and opened the interior of North America to settlement." [ErieCanalway-history]
Another interactive map This is the old Erie Canal, not the New York State Barge Canal. They have very different routes around Oneida Lake because the NYSBC uses Oneida Lake.
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| Google Search Results |
Features for which I have written some notes, from east to west:
- 1915 The Waterford Flight, the first five locks of the Erie Canal
- 1840s Enlarged Erie Canal Aqueduct and Road/Trail/NYC Bridges over Schoharie Creek at Fort Hunter, NY
- Lock #13 near Randall, NY
- Lock #17 in Little Falls, NY
- Old Erie Canal and Lock #20
- Locks #21 and #22 near Rome, NY
- Lock #23 near Brewerton, NY
- Oswego Canal: Lock #8 (last one) on the Oswego Canal
- Lock #24 in Baldwinsville, NY
- 1857 Enlarged Erie Canal Richmond Aqueduct over Seneca River near Montezuma, NY
- Two Truss Bridges over canal near Lyons, NY
- Lock #27 in Lyons, NY
- Lock #29 near Palmyra, NY
- Mitchell Road Bridge over Erie Canal in Pittsford, NY
- Lock #32 near Pittsford, NY
- Lock #33 in Brighton, NY
- Arch Bridge by Genesee River
- 1912,2006 Washington Street Lift Bridge over Erie Canal in Adams Basin, NY
- Park Avenue Lift Bridge over Erie Canal in Brockport, NY
- Medina Culvert
- Lockport Bridges: Scapelliti and Adams Street
- Lockport Flight, Erie Canal Locks (E34+E35) and 3.4mw powerhouse in Lockport, NY
- Lockport Bridges: High and Wide
- CSX/NYC's Strauss Trunnion Bridge over Erie Canal at Tonawanda, NY
A map that includes the branches.
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| Map via SchenectadyHistory via Dennis DeBruler Finch, p2 via NYcanals |
Almost any of the links referenced will explain the economic impact of this canal on New York and the Midwest. So I'm not going to repeat it here. The fact that it moved the "big city" of the country from Philadelphia to New York is a nice illustration of the impact. And that the canal motivated Pennsylvania and Washington DC to build their own canals and Baltimore to build the B&O Railroad.
- Stagecoach: two weeks
- 1817-25 40' (12m) x 4', 90' (27.4m) long locks 83 lift locks 5 days [EC-history]
- 1836-62 70' (21m) x 7', 110' (33.5m) long locks 72 locks [EC-facts, ErieCanal]
- 1903-18 12-13' x 120-200', 310' (94.4) long locks 36 locks [EC-facts, ErieCanal] locks are 44.5' (13.5m) wide and clearance of 5.5' (1.6m) [Finch, p25 via NYcanals]
The St. Lawrence Seaway killed most of the commercial traffic when it opened in 1959. But today the New York State Canal System has an important economic impact on the towns along the canal because of tourist traffic. [NYcanals]
The 40' width in 1825 was at the surface. Barges passing each other really had only 28' (8.5m).
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| ErieCanal |
I record this as a feature that needs to be researched.
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| SmithsonianMag, Library of Congress "In Little Falls, New York (pictured c. 1890), locks lifted boats more than 40 feet at the canal’s most difficult impasse." |
I have needed an overview of the Erie Canal for a while. This 24:00 video (source) is what motivated me to write it. I think that what he calls the Potowmack Canal became the C&O Canal. He implies that it was built before the Erie Canal. His own dates indicate that is wrong because he puts the start date as 1828. The Erie Canal started in 1817 and was done in 1825. When he started talking about debtor prisons, I quit watching.
When the canal opened, New York City was smaller than Boston, Philadelphia or New Orleans. [15:14 video @ 11:10] "By 1853, 63% of all US trade was flowing along the Erie Canal. [@ 14:15]
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| Random History of the Day posted July 4, 1817: In Rome, New York, construction on the Erie Canal began. Built to create a navigable water route from New York City and the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, it was the second longest canal in the world when it was completed in 1825 and greatly enhanced the development and economy of New York, New York City, and the United States. https://www.history.com/topics/landmarks/erie-canal |
21:13 video, a history of the canal
15:14 video, mostly why it was needed
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