Erie Canal
01-Who decided to build the Erie Canal and what was their role in getting it built?
-DeWitt Clinton tried to encourage people to build the canal because he thought it was important for New York State. -As the governor of New York, DeWitt Clinton thought the canal would be good for the state. -Clinton had a hard time persuading the community that it was possible to dig the Erie Canal. (3)
Who was DeWitt Clinton?
-The mayor of New York City was De Witt Clinton. (1) -De Witt Clinton became governor of New York on July 1, 1817 (1) -also decided to build the Erie Canal
23-How did the Erie Canal improve life of New York State?
13,000 boats traveled the canal in the first year. (1) In the first year 40,000 settlers traveled west. (1) (2) It took 20 days and cost $100 a ton from NYC to Buffalo. (1) The Erie Canal cut travel and cost to $10 a ton and 8 days. (1)(2) NYC became the most important city and port because trade boomed. (1) (2) Wheat, lumber, and iron could be traded from the east and west. (1) Population grew with the increase in trade and created jobs in NYC. (1) Buffalo population grew to 10,000 people in 1831. (1) The biggest grain port in the world was Buffalo. (1) In a short period of time a town that grows very fast is called a "boomtown". Rochester was the first. (1) Rochester's population grew from 331to 8,000 in just 2 years. (1) Lockport did not exist until the canal was started. (1) People moved near the Erie the Erie Canal after it was built which created new and larger town and cities. (2) 80% of upstate New York's residents lived within 25 miles of the Erie Canal. (2)
15-What is a towpath?
A tow path is a path along the side of the canal where horses or mules pulled the boats. (1)
21-How did the Erie Canal pay for itself?
Boats traveling on the canal paid tolls. (1) The tolls helped pay for the cost of building the canal in just 11 years. (1) Canal tolls paid for the cost of construction in 9 years. (2)
24-What has become of the Erie Canal? What is it used for now?
By 1842 the first railroad went from Buffalo to Boston. (1) The Erie Canal was eventually replaced by railroad. (1) 3 new forms of transportation helped trade in New York; the steamboat, canals, and the railroad. (1) After the canal was built it was used for transportation and vacation. (2) Today the canal is filed with boats, fishermen, and cyclists. (2) Between 1835 and 1900 the canal was made bigger twice so that more bats could travel on it. (2) It was made bigger again between 1905 and 1918. (2) The Erie canal was slowly replaced by railroads, highways and the St. Lawerence seaway. (2) Today, the New York State Canal system is used for recreation and is a historical resource. (2)
11-Were there children working on the canal?
Children, when they were old enough worked as "hoggees". (2) Hoggees walked the mules along the side of the canal. (2)
18-Describe the tree toppler.
Chopping down trees took many men and took a lot of time. (4)
Where are the end points on the canal?
De Witt Clinton wanted to build a canal that would connect Lake Erie with the Hudson River. Pioneers said they wanted an easier way to go west so they suggested to make the Erie Canal. Finally Lake Erie and the Hudson River were united.
09-What was the change in elevation between Buffalo and Albany?
Lake Erie is 565 feet higher in elevation than Albany. (1)
10-Who were the workers on the Erie Canal? What were some of the jobs?
Lots of immigrants worked on the Erie Canals. (2) Over 50,000 people counted on the canal for work. (2) Families worked on the canal ;fathers served as ship captains, mothers cooked for the crew. (2) Clinton gathered the smartest men he could find to map the canal. Then surveyors went out to mark where the canal was going to be dug. They chopped down trees and pulled out the stumps. (3) The carpenters and masons came to build the locks
Did everyone think the Erie Canal was a good idea?
Many people didn't think it would be possible to build a canal that long. People who made fun of the canal called it " Clinton's Ditch"
22-How did the celebrate the completion of the Erie Canal?
On October 26, 1825 a boat called Seneca chief left Buffalo with DeWitt Clinton on board. It reached New York Harbor on November 4th. (1) (2) Clinton poured water from Lake Erie into the Atlantic Ocean to celebrate the compleat ion of the canal. This was called the "Wedding of the Waters." (1) (2) When Clinton returned to Buffalo he poured water from the Atlantic Ocean into Lake Erie . (1)
19-Describe the stump puller.
Removing tree stumps were a problem. (1) Initially only 4 trees could be removed by workers in one day. (1) To solve this problem, workers invented a stump pulling machine. (1) 40 trees could be pulled per day with the stump puller. (1) The men started to think of easier methods to pull out tree stumps and to cart dirt. (3)
16-What materials were used to build the canal.
The Erie Canal was built using only man power and horses. (2) When the Erie Canal was being built they only had man-power. (3) A young laborer named Canvass White spotted some strange looking rock. He decided to experiment with this rock. He put it over fire and put some sand in it and formed it into a ball. He let it dry overnight. The next morning when he found the ball rock hard. He told the Erie Canal workers about this rock and the Erie Canal got large deposits of it.
Who mapped the route to the Erie Canal? How long was it?
The Erie Canal was mapped by the smartest people Clinton could find. (3)
What was the width, length, and depth of the canal?
The distance between Lake Erie and the Hudson is about 360 miles. (1) The Erie Canal was 363 miles long. (2) The Erie Canal was 40 feet wide and 4 feet deep. (2) Clinton was planning to build the Erie Canal 4 ft deep and 40 ft wide, this would be difficult because there were no trained engineers in America.
How did the U.S get money to build the Erie Canal?
To dig the Erie Canal it would cost at least 7million dollars. (1) (2) The New York. State Legislature approved construction of the Erie Canal on April 15, 1817. (2) It would cost to much and the land is to rough. (3)
20-Describe the new wheelbarrow.
Wheelbarrows were invented by workers on the Erie Canal. (1) Work went faster because dirt could be dumped all at once with the wheelbarrow. (1) They invented a wagon to pull and transport dirt.
17-How did they build walls and locks? How did they fix them?
Workers solved the problem of change in in elevation by building locks. (1) A canal moves boats up and down to higher and lower levels. (1) A total of 83 locks were built on the Erie Canal. (1) In Lockport, the drop evaluation was so steep they had to build 5 locks in a row. (1) Between Albany and Schenectady travel along the canal was slow. (1) In the 24 miles between Albany and Schenectady there were 27 locks. (1)
