Erie Canal and Lock 29

New York governor DeWitt Clinton proposed the building of the Erie Canal, his dream, in 1808. A shortage of funds put it off until New York legislature agreed to fund it in 1817. The construction of the Erie Canal ended in October 1825 with a ceremonial bucket of water taken from Lake Erie and poured into the Ocean. The Erie Canal, an artificial waterway, runs through the village of Palmyra at lock 29. The Erie Canal stretches from Albany on the Hudson River to Buffalo, New York, a length of 364 miles.

It took just twelve years to pay off the seven million dollars used to build the Erie Canal because of the mercantilism it brought to New York. The Erie Canal reduced the freighters' cost by 90 percent. Cities along the Erie Canal such as Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and many others grew from small communities to large industrial centers. As a result of the canal's success, New York City and New York State grew dramatically until it was the leading trading and industrial capital of the country, thus cementing its claim as the nations "Empire."

The Erie Canal had an impact on the nation as well. According to many historians, the financial success of the project put the northern states far ahead of the South when it came to running a costly Civil War. Because of the success of the project, New York built many other canals, constituting the 524 mile New York State canal system which includes Lake Champlain-Hudson River, and Seneca-Cayuga.