Erie Canal: Catalyst of America's Economic Dominance

The adventurous but interesting story of how the United States of America became a global power in the world economy can be traced to the ingenuity of a small group of men, who defied all odds to construct a link between the Atlantic Ocean and the great Lakes - the “Erie Canal”, constructed in the eighteenth century America, was a 363 miles artificial waterway that connected the eastern seaboard with New York through Albany. In the book “the Wedding of the Waters” Peter Bernstein clinically depicts the story of how the Erie Canal shaped the economy of America, strengthened the Industrial Revolution, and actuated globalization. Not only was the project a large scale engineering that was completely man-made, it was also unique in that there was

(Pg 22). The United States of America, which was considered young at that time, was faced with problems of economical growth and development. The country had no major canal connecting the coastal areas to the west and transportation of agricultural and manufactured products was a big challenge to the people. In addition to that, the primitive style of transportation was not just out of date; it was also an impediment on economic growth. For instance, the cost of transporting commodities by wagon over the rough roads from Buffalo to Albany, New York, often involved sums equal to five or six times the values of the goods themselves.(pg-99). Not many were willing to embark on long distance travel over rough roads and paths. To solve this problem, America would have to surmount the Appalachian mountain which posed a big barrier between the coastal states and enormous lands at the opposite side. The then president of the United States, President George Washington, who happened to be the first among the visionaries of a sort of waterway project, feared the danger of losing these vast lands to some European countries unless a form of communication is established between the two ends. In his effort to forestall the threatening breakup of the union as a result of the barrier, President Washington had to come up with a contemporary solution which eventually became a platform for the construction of the Erie