The Briefing Room
General Category => Science, Technology and Knowledge => History => Topic started by: rangerrebew on January 10, 2017, 06:30:30 pm
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Traveling the Erie Canal, 1836
It was the engineering marvel of its time - its construction compared to the building of the pyramids of Ancient Egypt. The idea for a canal connecting the Hudson River and the Great Lakes was first proposed in the early 1800s by a miller living in a village in upstate New York. President Thomas Jefferson declared the idea "little short of madness", but Dewitt Clinton, then Mayor of New York City, championed the concept. When Clinton became Governor of the state, he pushed through legislation funding the construction of the canal - Clinton's "Big Ditch" (also dubbed "Clinton's Folly") was born. The massive job was begun in 1817 and completed in 1825.
How To Cite This Article:
"Traveling the Erie Canal, 1836", EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2004).
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/pferiecanal.htm
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Cool. I'm going to have that song stuck in my head all day now.
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It probably contributed to Michigan becoming a state in 1838. The ability to easily move goods to the frontier made it a lot easier to settle here.
I know Dewitt Clinton got his name on a lot of things here in Michigan.
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I don't always agree with Clinton but in this case, I believe Governor Clinton did the correct thing.