THE ERIE CANAL BEGINNINGS AND PRESENT

It may surprise you to know, that what we call the Erie Canal today is a combination of the original Erie Canal and the Barge Canal.  I am not going to go into a complete history of both canals, but just touch on some information that might interest you.

Built in New York State, the original Erie Canal was 363 miles and ran from Albany, New York (on the Hudson River) to Buffalo, New York (on Lake Erie).  It was built to have a navigable route from Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes.

The Erie Canal was first proposed in 1807, but construction did not begin until 1817.  Today the canal contains 36 locks and a total elevation difference of about 565 feet.  The Erie opened October 26, 1825.

At that time goods were limited to pack animals as there were no steamship lines, or railways.  Water was the most cost-effective way for products, at that time.  The Erie Canal was the first transportation system from New York City to the Great Lakes that did not have to go over land.  This system was faster than over land and cut transportation costs by 95 per cent.  Erie Canal was enlarged between 1834 and 1862.  In 1918, the western part of the Erie Canal was enlarged to become a part of the New York State Barge Canal, which ran parallel to the eastern half and extended to the Hudson.

On the walk way behind where I live you can see spots of where the original Erie Canal was.

I will be doing more on the Erie Canal.  There will be pictures of our local lock on the canal.  Also, I will show pictures of our Erie Canal Museum and I will show pictures of my cruise on the Erie Canal.  I thank the Palmyra Historical Society Museum for sending me a copy of the top picture.  It was so very kind of them.

Marilyn