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July 4, 1817 Construction Begins on the Erie Canal!

Construction on the original Erie Canal started in 1817. It opened in 1825 providing fast, economical transport from Lake Erie at Buffalo to the Hudson River at Albany.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
Clinton's Ditch

In 1816 Canal Commissioner DeWitt Clinton petitioned the State Senate and Assembly to create the canal system. Mocked by opponents as "Clinton's Ditch" its success was almost immediate.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
The First Shovel of Dirt

Construction of the canal began on a middle section near Rome, New York and expanded outward from there. The original canal was 40 feet wide and 4 feet deep and was 363 miles long.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
Progress!

This 1839 sketch shows the Erie Canal at Lockport, demonstrating the progress that had been made on locks to that point.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
Success!

The canal offered a fast, inexpensive means for transporting goods between Albany and Buffalo. Its success lead to a series of enlargement projects between 1836 and 1862.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
An Engineering Feat

You can see an amazing array of maps, plans and drawings in our Digital Collections. The documents illustrate continued construction throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
Horse Power

The Erie Canal was built by thousands of laborers using basic tools and the power of horses and mules. Once constructed, barges were pulled through the canal by horses and mules.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
Community

According to the NYS Canal Corporation "With the exception of Binghamton and Elmira, every major city in New York falls along the trade route established by the Erie Canal."

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
Industry

The salt industry around Syracuse benefited greatly from the Erie Canal. Once difficult to transport, the Canal offered a relatively easy means of transporting large amounts of salt to new markets.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
The Barge Canal

The canal was expanded to accommodate 1,000 ton barges. Construction on the Barge Canal began in 1905 and it opened to traffic in 1918. The Barge Canal system consisted of the Erie, Champlain, Oswego, Cayuga and Seneca Canals.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial
National Historic Landmark

The modern canal system includes four Canals: Erie, Champlain, Oswego and Cayuga-Seneca. It is a National Historic Landmark and has been transformed into a successful tourist destination, again supporting business development across the State.

Celebrating the Erie Canal's Bicentennial