Special Edition: Erie Canal Yesterday and Today
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The Erie Canal Yesterday and Today
By Toni Stevens-Oliver
“I’ve got an old mule and her name is Sal, 15 miles on the Erie Canal!” This popular folksong tells of life during the early days of the canal. It gives us clues as to what the canal’s purpose was – to move goods, like lumber, coal, and hay, as well as people, from cities along the canal’s path from Albany to Buffalo. The canal made many small farming communities into commercial ports.
Over time, railroads became the main method of transportation. By the early 1960s, many sections of the canal were no longer used and eventually fell into disrepair.
Fast forward to 1995. The New York State Canal Recreationway Plan was created. New York State wanted to turn the canal into a place people could come to have fun. In many canal communities there are still buildings and structures along the canal that were once used to process farm products into items people needed, like milling wheat into flour. Other buildings were used to store produce and different types of goods waiting to be shipped along the canal. In many communities those same buildings have been updated and repurposed to help bring people back to the canal. For example, the old flour mill and grain tower in Pittsford, which were used for processing and distribution from 1882 until 1996, have been restored and are used for office space. The old coal tower, which once held coal for steam powered canal boats, is a restaurant. People come to the canal for concerts at the town gazebo. They walk their dogs and bike along the old tow paths. There is even a replica packet boat, the “Sam Patch”, that cruises the canal.
The Erie Canal has been open in Pittsford for 200 years. Its purpose has changed over that time, but it is still an important part of life in the community.
Did You Know?
The Erie Canal was 363 miles long when it opened.
Nine- and 10-year-old boys were used as "Powder Monkeys". They were the only ones small enough to place explosives in the fissures and cracks in the rocks that would blow a path through rocky areas.
When Governor DeWitt Clinton reached New York City during his opening voyage on the canal, he poured a barrel of water from Lake Erie into the Atlantic Ocean. This is known as the Wedding of the Waters.
Lockport got its name because it originally had 5 locks, the most on Erie Canal.
The building of the canal started in the middle, in Rome, New York.
In some areas, the canal needed a bridge to cross over a valley. This is known as a aqueduct.
When it opened the Erie Canal was 40 feet wide and four feet deep.
Community Connections
· Visit the Erie Canal Museum to learn more about the history of this water highway. https://eriecanalmuseum.org
· Find the marker for Historic Schoen Place. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=115402
· Learn about the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor https://eriecanalway.org/explore/take-kids
