The Erie Canal

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The date was October 26th, 1825. All the way from Troy, New York to New York City, cannons were fired to signal the completion of what had been New York’s biggest undertaking. America’s rapid industrialization had made it obvious that a connection was needed between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean. After dozens of proposals and a Presidential veto, the State of New York and NYC Mayor DeWitt Clinton took it upon themselves to carve a 363-mile canal from Troy to the sea. The Erie Canal was a feat of manpower, with 83 locks (devices that could raise or lower boats to water level), 17 aqueducts and a path on the side for horses and mules to assist in pulling boats. (Photo: Erie Canal in Ohio) The building of the canal was done without modern machines, only men and shovels, showing the strength and determination of the workers. The Erie Canal allowed goods to be shipped to the upper Midwest for a tenth of what it would have cost before. This new method of transporting goods from/to NYC via the Hudson River (Photo: Entering the Hudson) allowed New York City to become a metropolis, s...

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