Ten years after the Erie Canal opened in 1825, many of the towns and villages that had celebrated the opening of the Canal had grown into busy communities and cities. The Canal helped move goods and people through New York State. Before the Canal was built, it cost between $90 and $125 to ship a ton of cargo between Buffalo and New York City, but by 1835 that price had dropped to $4 per ton. Wheat, oats, and logs, from western New York streamed to the New York markets.

The Canal was not just used for trade; in its first year of operation more than forty thousand passengers traveled the new waterway because it helped make travel over long distances easier. The few roads that existed at the time were bumpy and not well maintained. Traveling by boat on a canal was slow but smooth.

Canal boats were pulled by horses or mules and traveled at about four miles per hour. The boats floated in the water in the canal and the horses and mules walked beside the canal on a dirt towpath. Ropes were tied to the boat and to the horses or mules. The boat only went as fast as the horses and mules could walk.

Boats on the Erie Canal carried settlers and business people who were looking for new opportunities. They carried products from the newly settled lands in central and western New York and the midwestern states to markets in New York City. Tourists also traveled by canal boat. People were curious to see this new man-made waterway, the locks and aqueducts that made it work, the beautiful countryside, and the cities and villages the canal passed through.

People were excited about the Erie Canal, but the Canal also caused problems.

The people building the canal had found the work very difficult. When they thought they were going to dig in dirt, they sometimes found solid rock instead! Sometimes the cost of the materials they needed to make the Canal was more than they had planned to spend. Sometimes the workers damaged property, cut down trees without permission, and trampled farmer's crops. Sometimes the Canal would leak and flood fields and basements, or it divided farms in half. A farmer might have some fields on one side of the Canal and some fields on the other side, with no bridge to connect them.

Later on, people living along the Canal often did not want strangers passing through their communities. They liked their peaceful lives and were afraid that the Canal would bring thieves and corruption to their small towns and villages. They worried that strangers passing through on canal boats might also bring diseases from the eastern cities.

New Yorkers had mixed feelings about the Erie Canal. They saw the advantages of quicker and cheaper transportation, but they also recognized the problems it would bring. To understand why people felt the way they did about the Erie Canal, let's take a look at some of the information they left behind.

Classroom Connections

Erie Canal. Early Canal Illustration

Identifier
NYSA_A0834-77_005
Description
Unidentified photo of an illustration of early Erie Canal. circa 1888.
New York State Archives, New York (State). Printed material, correspondence and photographs from the Canal Investigating Commission, 1888-1912. Series A0834-77, No. 005.
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Petition from the Citizens of the Town of German Flatts

Identifier
NYSA_A1140-78_1829_063_p2
Description
This letter of appeal was written by the citizens of the town of German Flatts (sometimes written Germanflatts) in Herkimer County to the Canal Board. The petition describes how a feeder stream for the Erie Canal floods in fall and freezes over in winter, spilling onto the road into town. The water and ice cause damage to properties and create a hazard. The petitioners suggest an alternative source of water for the canal which will not flood the river road. 1829.
New York State Archives. New York (State). Canal Board. Petitions and appeals to the Canal Board, 1827-1926. A1140-78, Box 1, folder 11, document 63.
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Map of the Town of German Flatts

Identifier
NYSA_A1140-78_1829_063_p3
Description
Map of the Town of German Flatts (sometimes written as Germanflatts) showing proposed feeder canal. The map accompanied a petition from the citizens of the town concerned about flooding and damage to their property. 1829.
New York State Archives. New York (State). Canal Board. Petitions and appeals to the Canal Board, 1827-1926. A1140-78, Box 1, folder 11, document 63.
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Learning Activities

Valuable Water Power for Sale at Waterford, NY

Identifier
NYSA_A1140-78_1829_062_p3
Description
Broadside announcing opportunities for industry arising from a new dam across the Mohawk River. Close proximity to the Erie Canal and the Hudson River offered opportunities for manufactured goods to be shipped to New York City within one day. April 2, 1829.
New York State Archives. New York (State). Canal Board. Petitions and appeals to the Canal Board, 1827-1926. A1140-78, Box 1, folder 11, document 62.
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Learning Activities

Letter from Henry Van Patten

Identifier
NYSA_A1140-78_1829_011_p1_s1
Description
Petition from Henry Van Patten to the State Canal Board requesting reimbursement for the construction of a bridge and destruction of his well. Following the construction of the canal, Van Patten was obliged to build a bridge over the canal from his house to reach his farmland. February 11, 1829.
New York State Archives. New York (State). Canal Board. Petitions and appeals to the Canal Board, 1827-1926. A1140-78, Box 1, folder 8, document 11.
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Learning Activities

Letter from Mr. G. Meade

Identifier
NYSA_A1140-78_1836_misc_030_p2
Description
Letter of appeal from Mr. G. Meade to the Canal Board requesting funding for his newly invented icebreaker. July 11, 1836.
New York State Archives. New York (State). Canal Board. Petitions and appeals to the Canal Board, 1827-1926. A1140-78, Box 4, folder 1, document 30.
This image is provided for education and research purposes. Rights may be reserved. Responsibility for securing permissions to distribute, publish, reproduce or other use rest with the user.
Learning Activities