The Ohio Canal or Ohio and Erie Canal was a canal constructed in the early 1800s, which connected Akron, Summit County with the Cuyahoga River near the Cuyahoga's mouth on Lake Erie in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, and a few years later, with the Ohio River near Portsmouth, Scioto County, and then connections to other canal systems in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

The canal carried freight traffic from 1827 to 1861, and then freight traffic rapidly diminished due to the construction of railroads. From 1862 to 1913, the canal served as a water source to industries and towns. In 1913, much of the canal system was abandoned after critical sections were destroyed by severe flooding.

Today, most of the remaining portions are managed by either the National Park Service or Ohio Department of Natural Resources, providing recreational opportunities for the public, and continuing to provide water for some industries. Parts of the canal are preserved, including the Ohio and Erie Canal Historic District, a U.S. National Historic Landmark.

History

After achieving Statehood in 1803, Ohio was a sparsely populated state of 50,000 persons, scattered and with no economical means of transportation of goods. With no access to markets, agriculture served only local needs and manufacturing was nearly non-existing.

Agitation for a canal system (1787-1822)

As early as 1787, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson had discussed the desirability of a canal linking Lake Erie to the Ohio River as part of a national system of canals. It wasn't until 1807 that Ohio's first Senator, Thomas Worthington offered a resolution in Congress asking Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin to report to the Senate. In 1810, DeWitt Clinton was appointed to head the Erie Canal Commission. He was unsuccessful in his attempt to get national aid for the construction of a canal connecting Lake Erie to the Hudson River, so he enlisted the aid of Ohio (and its congressional delegation). On January 15, 1812 the Ohio General Assembly passed a resolution indicating that the connection of the Great Lakes with the Hudson River was a project of "national concern". President Madison was against the proposal, however, and the War of 1812 ended all discussion.

On December 11, 1816, Governor DeWitt Clinton of New York sent a letter to the Ohio Legislature indicating his state's willingness to construct the Erie Canal without national help, and asking the State of Ohio to join in the endeavor. On January 9, 1817, the Ohio Legislature directed Ohio's Governor, the same Thomas Worthington, to negotiate a deal with Clinton. Due to the cost, however, the Ohio Legislature dallied, and nothing happened for the next 3 years. Finally, in January 1822, in a fit of progressivism, the Ohio Legislature passed acts to fund the canal system and the state's public education obligations.

Survey and design (1822)

On January 31, 1822 the Ohio Legislature passed a resolution to employ an engineer and appoint commissioners to survey and design the canal system as soon as possible. A sum not to exceed $6000 was allocated for this purpose.

James Geddes, an engineer experienced from work on the New York canals, was employed. Since most of Ohio's population lived along a line from Cleveland to Cincinnati, it was necessary that these areas be served by the main trunk of the canal. Since canals must generally follow river valleys, it was difficult to design a suitable system. Specifically, the bridging of the Scioto and Miami river valleys required raising the canal to such an elevation that water from neither river could be used as a source. As a result, the canal was divided into two sections, the Ohio and Erie Canal from Cleveland to Portsmouth which crossed the Licking Divide and followed the Scioto River Valley, and the Miami and Erie Canal which connected Cincinnati to Dayton. In later years this second canal would be extended all the way to the Maumee River at Toledo.

Copies of the original survey plat maps for the construction of both Ohio canals are available on-line from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Construction (1825-1832)

On February 4, 1825, the Ohio Legislature passed "An Act to provide for the Internal Improvement of the State of Ohio by Navigable Canals". The Canal Commission was authorized to borrow $400,000 in 1825, and not more than $600,000 per year thereafter. The notes issued were to be redeemable between 1850 and 1875.

On July 4, 1825, ground was broken on the canal at Licking Summit near Newark, Ohio.

The canals were specified to have a minimum width of at the top, at the bottom, and a depth of feet minimum. These limits were often exceeded, and indeed it was cheaper to do so in most cases. For example, it might be cheaper to build one embankment and then let the water fill all the way to the adjacent foothills, perhaps hundreds of feet away, rather than build two embankments. By damming the rivers, long stretches of slackwater could be created which, with the addition of towpaths, could serve as portions of the canal. Where it made economic sense to do so, such as lock widths or portions of the canal through narrow rock or across aqueducts, the minimum widths were adhered to.

Contracts were let for the following tasks:

• Grubbing and clearing
• Mucking and ditching
• Embankment and excavation
• Locks and culverts
• Puddling
• Protection

Initially, contractors in general proved to be inexperienced and unreliable. It was common for one job to receive 50 bids, many of them local to where the work was being performed. The chosen contractor, having underbid the contract, often would vanish in the night leaving his labor force unpaid and his contract unfulfilled. This problem was so bad that laborers refused to perform canal work for fear of not being paid. As the bidding process was improved, and more reliable contractors engaged, the situation improved.

Workers were initially paid $0.30 per day and offered a jigger of whiskey. As work progressed, and where labor was in shortage, workers could make as much as $15 per month. At that time, cash money was hard to come by in Ohio forcing much bartering. Working on the canal was appealing and attracted many farmers from their land.

On July 3, 1827 the first canal boat on the Ohio and Erie Canal left Akron, traveled through 41 locks and over 3 aqueducts along of canal, to arrive at Cleveland on July 4. While the average speed of seems slow, canal boats could carry 10 tons of goods and were much more efficient than wagons over rutted trails.



Over the next five years, more and more portions of the canal opened, with it finally being completed in 1832:

• 1828 opens from Akron to Massillon, Ohio. The canal is long.
• 1829 opens from Massillon to Dover, Ohio. The canal is long.
• 1830 opens from Dover to Newark, Ohio. The canal is long.
• 1831 opens from Newark to Chillicothe, Ohio. The canal is long.

In 1832, the Ohio and Erie Canal was completed. The entire canal system was long with 146 lift locks and a rise of . In addition, there were five feeder canals that added and 6 additional locks to the system consisting of:

• Tuscarawas Feeder (3.2 miles)
• Walhonding Feeder (1.3 miles)
• Granville Feeder (6.1 miles)
• Muskinghum Side Cut (2.6 miles)
• Columbus Feeder (11.6 miles)

The canal's lock numbering system was oriented from the Lower Basin, near the southwest corner of the current Exchange and Main streets in Akron. North of the basin is Lock 1 North, and south of the basin is Lock 1 South. At this basin was the joining of the Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal.

Operation (1833 - 1913)

The canals enjoyed a golden period of prosperity from the 1830s to the early 1860s, with a peak in revenue between 1852 and 1855. During the 1840s, Ohio was the third most prosperous state, owing much of that growth to the canal. Immediately following the Civil War, it became apparent that railroads would take the canal's business. From 1861 until 1879, after the canal had been badly flooded, Ohio leased its canals to private owners who earned revenue from dwindling boat operation and the sale of water to factories and towns. When the state took the canals back in 1879, it discovered that they had not been maintained, and that state lands surrounding the canals had been illegally sold to private owners. In many cases, canals were filled in for "health reasons", only to find a newly laid railroad track on their right of way. Much State land was given away for free to politically savvy private owners. Nevertheless, some revenue was accrued into the early twentieth century from the sale of water rights as well as recovery and sale of land surrounding the canals.

Abandonment

After the peak of the 1850s and a bottoming out of revenue due to the Civil War in the early 1860s the canal's expenditures starting to outgrow its revenues due to rising maintenance costs. By 1911, most of the southern portion of the canal had been abandoned. On March 23, 1913, after a winter of record snowfall, storms dumped an abnormally heavy amount of rain on the state, causing extensive flooding. This caused the reservoirs to spill over into the canals, destroying aqueducts, washing out banks, and devastating most of the locks. In Akron, Lock 1 was dynamited to allow backed up floodwater to flow.

Notable persons associated with the Canal

• As a teenager in 1847, James Garfield worked as a Hoggee, driving mules to pull barges along the canal. After repeatedly falling into the canal on the job, Garfield became ill, and decided to go to college instead.

The Canal today

The Ohio and Erie Canal Historic District, a historic district including part of the canal, was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1966. It is a four mile (6 km) section within the township of Valley View, Ohio that contains three locks, the Tinkers Creek Aqueduct and two structures.

A remaining watered section of the Ohio & Erie Canal is located in Summit County, Ohio. The Ohio & Erie Canal is maintained, to this day, as a water supply for local industries. After the flood, a few sections of the canal continued in use hauling cargo to local industries. Another watered section extends from the Station Road Bridge in Brecksville northwards into Valley View and Independence, all Cleveland suburbs.

The section of the Ohio & Erie Canal from the Brecksville Dam to Rockside Road in Cuyahoga County was transferred to the National Park Service in 1989 as part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreational Area (now known as the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

A lease on the canal lands from the Cuyahoga Valley National Park to the terminus of the canal has been executed with the Cleveland Metroparks. The Metroparks manage the adjacent real estate and the surrounding Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation.

The section of the Ohio & Erie Canal still owned and maintained by the Division of Water in southern Summit is referred to as the watered section. This section runs from the north end of Summit Lake south to Barberton, a distance of about . Included in this section is the feeder canal from the Tuscarawas River and the hydraulics at the Portage Lakes.

The Ohio & Erie Canal is maintained from Akron by a staff of six Division of Water employees. Like its sister canal, the Ohio & Erie Canal carries a large amount of stormwater. The canals were not designed to accommodate this great influx of stormwater. Most of the siltation and erosion problems experienced today are the result of stormwater inappropriately piped into the canals over the years.

In late 1996, the canal from Zoar to Cleveland was designated a National Heritage Corridor. This designation was brought about through the efforts of many communities, civic organizations, businesses and individuals working in partnership. The Department is working with numerous local communities and organizations to assure the continued development of the Ohio & Erie Canal.

A map showing the disposition of the canal lands is available on-line from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Points of interest

• Alexander's (a.k.a. Wilson's) Mill
• Richard Howe House (future site)
• Boston Store
• Canal Visitor Center
• Frazee House
• Mustill Store
• Peninsula Depot
• Station Road Bridge
• Tinkers Creek Aqueduct

Connecting canals

The Ohio and Erie Canal initially provided a connection between Akron and Lake Erie at Cleveland, then extending all the way to the Ohio River within a few years. Later, connecting canal systems were built connecting it with the Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal and other parts of Eastern Ohio.

Ohio and Erie Canal - Connecting Canals

Coordinates	Elevation	Name	Description
		Columbus Feeder	Lockbourne, Columbus, Franklin County
		Granville Feeder	Granville, Licking County
		Hocking Valley	Carroll, Lancaster, Fairfield County; Logan, Hocking County; Nelsonville, Athens, Athens County
		Muskingum Side Cut	Dresden, Zanesville, Muskingum County; McConnelsville, Morgan County; Marietta, Washington County
		Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal	Akron, Summit County; Kent, Ravenna, Portage County; Warren, Trumbull County; Youngstown, Mahoning County; Ohio;; Lawrence; Beaver, Beaver County; Allegheny, Pennsylvania
		Sandy and Beaver Canal a.k.a. Tuscarawas Feeder	Bolivar, Tuscarawas County; Hanoverton, Lisbon, East Liverpool, Columbiana County; Glasgow, Beaver County, Pennsylvania
		Walhonding Canal	Roscoe Village, Coshocton County; Brinkhaven, Knox County

Towpath Trail landmarks

An all-purpose bicycle/pedestrian trail was constructed by Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Southern Cuyahoga County and Northern Summit County, Cleveland Metroparks in Northern Cuyahoga County, and Akron/Summit County Metroparks in Southern Summit County to roughly follow the original Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath route. (The Northernmost section in Cuyahoga County is still undergoing construction.) There are many connecting trails going to other points of interest throughout their park systems.

Please help by expanding this section with any notable landmarks along the Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail.

Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail Landmarks

Mile Post	ID #	Coordinates	Elevation	Name	Type	Municipality	County	Description
0	44 North			Cuyahoga River Sloop	Lock	Cleveland	Cuyahoga	Merwin Street between James street and West street
	43 North				Lock	Cleveland	Cuyahoga	Sherwin Williams, James and West, Merrwin and Vineyard
				Weigh	Lock	Cleveland	Cuyahoga	Seneca a.k.a. West 3rd. street
3	42 North				Lock	Cleveland	Cuyahoga	relocated to 42A,
3	42A North			Weigh and Guard	Lock	Cleveland	Cuyahoga	near Grasselli chemical company, Dille street and Independence road
5	41 North			RathBuns	Lock		Cuyahoga	near Austin Powder Works, Harvard Road, near Jennings Road
8	40 North			Willow	Lock	Cuyahoga Heights	Cuyahoga	off Canal Road, near I-77
				Mill Creek	Aqueduct	Cuyahoga Heights	Cuyahoga	carries canal over Mill Creek off Canal Road
					GNIS			GNIS 17 Cleveland South topographic map
					Bridge		Cuyahoga	Rockside Road
					TrailHead		Cuyahoga	CVSR
11					MilePost Marker		Cuyahoga
11	39 North				Lock	Independence	Cuyahoga
					GNIS			GNIS 16 Shaker Heights topographic map
12					MilePost Marker		Cuyahoga
					Bridge		Cuyahoga	Hillside Road
					TrailHead		Cuyahoga	CVSR-Canal Visitor Center, 7104 Canal Road and Hillside Road
12	38 North				Lock	Valley View	Cuyahoga	Canal Visitor Center
							Cuyahoga County	Tinkers Creek Road
13					MilePost Marker		Cuyahoga
				Tinkers Creek	Aqueduct		Cuyahoga	carries canal over Tinkers Creek
					Bridge		Cuyahoga	Alexander Road-Pleasant Valley Road
14	37 North				Lock		Cuyahoga	Alexander's Mill
					Mill		Cuyahoga	Alexanders (a.k.a. Wilsons)
14					MilePost Marker		Cuyahoga
					Trailhead		Cuyahoga	Sagamore Road
15					MilePost Marker		Cuyahoga
16					MilePost Marker		Cuyahoga
					GNIS			GNIS 15 Northfield topographic map
17	36 North			Pinery Dam and Feeder	Lock		Summit
					Bridge		Summit	SR-82
17					MilePost Marker		Summit
					TrailHead		Summit	Station Road bridge to CVSR-Brecksville
19	35 North			Kettlewell Whiskey	Lock		Summit
18					MilePost Marker		Summit
					Trail		Summit	Old Carriage
					Trail		Summit	Old Carriage Connector
19					MilePost Marker		Summit
20	34 North			Red	Lock		Summit	Jaite in southwestern Northfield Township
					TrailHead		Red Lock
					Bridge		Summit	Highland Road
20					MilePost Marker		Summit
20.5	33 North			Wallace	Lock		Summit	in Boston Township
21					MilePost Marker		Summit
21	32 North			Boston	Lock		Summit	Boston Township
							Summit	Boston Mills Road
					TrailHead		Summit	CVSR-Boston Store
					Bridge		Summit	I-271 Southbound
					Bridge		Summit	I-271 Northbound
					Bridge		Summit	I-80 Westbound
					Bridge		Summit	I-80 Eastbound
22					MilePost Marker		Summit
							Summit	Stumpy Basin
22	31 North			Lonesome	Lock		Summit	was in Boston Township
23					MilePost Marker		Summit
23	30 North			Peninsula Feeder	Lock	Peninsula	Summit
				Peninsula	TrailHead	Peninsula	Summit	CVSR
23	29 North			Peninsula	Lock	Peninsula	Summit
				Peninsula	Aqueduct	Peninsula	Summit	carried canal over Cuyahoga River
					Bridge		Summit	SR-303
24					MilePost Marker		Summit
25	28 North			Deep	Lock	Peninsula	Summit	at the deepest lock along the canal
					TrailHead		Summit	Deep Lock Quarry
25					MilePost Marker		Summit
26					MilePost Marker		Summit
27	27 North			Johnny Cake	Lock		Summit
				Furnace Run	Aqueduct		Summit	carried canal over Furnace Run
27					MilePost Marker		Summit
					Bridge		Summit	Bolanz Road
28					MilePost Marker		Summit
							Summit	Beaver Marsh
28	26 North			Pancake	Lock		Summit
				Ira	TrailHead		Summit	CVSR
29					MilePost Marker		Summit
28	25 North			Mudcatcher	Lock		Summit
30	24 North			Niles	Lock		Summit
					Bridge		Summit	Yellow Creek
30					MilePost Marker		Summit
					Bridge		Summit	Bath Road
				Indian Mound	TrailHead		Summit	CVSR
					GNIS			GNIS 14 Akron West topographic map
32	23 North			Booth port	Lock		Summit	sewer pipe
32	22 North			Booth port	Lock		Summit	Merriman sewer pipe
33	21 North				Lock		Summit	sewer over-flow
	20 North				Lock		Summit	train abutments
	19 North			Black Dog Crossing	Lock		Summit	near Hickory and Memorial
35	18 North				Lock		Summit
36	17 North				Lock		Summit
36	16 North				Lock		Summit
36	15 North			Akron Mustill Store	Lock	Akron	Summit
36	14 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	North Street
36	13 North				Lock	Akron	Summit
36	12 North				Lock	Akron	Summit
36	11 North				Lock	Akron	Summit
36	10 North				Lock	Akron	Summit
	9 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	north of Market street
	8 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	tunnel
37	7 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	middle tunnel
37	6 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	tunnel below parking deck North of Mill street
37	5 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	tunnel
37	4 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	tunnel
37	3 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	South Main street
38	2 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	Water street
38	1 North				Lock	Akron	Summit	West Exchange street
	0			Portage landing	Lock	Akron	Summit	Portage lakes, Manchester Road
	1 South			Wolf creek	Lock	Barberton	Summit	Snyder avenue
				Wolf creek	Aqueduct	Barberton	Summit	Snyder avenue
					GNIS			GNIS 13 Doylestown topographic map
	2 South				Lock	New Franklin	Stark	Center Road
	3 South				Lock	New Franklin	Stark	Center Road
					GNIS			GNIS 12 Canal Fulton topographic map
	4 South				Lock	Canal Fulton	Stark
					GNIS			GNIS 11 Massillon topographic map
					GNIS			GNIS 10 Bolivar topographic map
					GNIS			GNIS 9 Thornville topographic map
					GNIS			GNIS 8 Millersport topographic map
	5 South				Lock
	5A South				Lock
					Lock
					Lock
	31 South				Lock
	32 South				Lock
	33 South				Lock
	North 20				Lock
	North 19				Lock
	North 18				Lock
					Lock
					Lock
	North 1				Lock
	North 0			Minthorn	Lock	Newark	Licking
	South 0			Pugh	Lock
	South 1		195	King Watson	Lock			Canal Road
					GNIS			GNIS 7 Baltimore topographic map
196	South 2			David Miller's White Mill	Lock	Baltimore	Fairfield
197.4	South 3			Norris Mill	Lock	Baltimore	Fairfield
	South 4			Short Level	Lock	Baltimore	Fairfield
198	South 5			Dry Dock	Lock	Baltimore	Fairfield
198.3	South 6			Mulnix Mill	Lock	Baltimore	Fairfield
198.8	South 7			Wells Mill	Lock			Basil, Ohio
200	South 8			Bibler	Lock			Basil, Ohio
208	South 9				Lock	Carroll	Fairfield
	South 10				Lock	Carroll, Ohio	Fairfield
206	South 11				Lock	Violet Township	Fairfield County, Ohio	Upper Lockville
	South 12			Tennis/Tennat	Lock			Lockville
	South 13			Rowe	Lock			Lockville
	South 14			Smallwood	Lock
	South 15			Fickle Mill Short Level	Lock			Lockville
	South 16			Rover Short Level	Lock			Lockville
	South 17			Swimmer's	Lock			Lockville
	South 18			Creek	Lock			Lockvile
208				Walnet Creek Guard	Lock
					GNIS			GNIS 6 Canal Winchester topographic map
210	South 19			Chaney's Mill	Lock	Canal Winchester
210	South 20			Woolen	Lock	Canal Winchester		Gender Road
	South 21				Lock	Canal Winchester		near Glenarda Farms, Groveport Road
				George's Culvert		Canal Winchester
	South 22			Groveport	Lock
					GNIS			GNIS 5 Lockbourne topographic map
217	South 23				Lock	Lockbourne	Franklin	Canal Road
217	South 24				Lock	Lockbourne	Franklin	Canal Road
217	South 25				Lock	Lockbourne	Franklin	Canal Road
217.5	South 26				Lock	Lockbourne	Franklin
218	South 27				Lock	Lockbourne	Franklin	Canal Road
218	South 28				Lock	Lockbourne	Franklin	under railroad track bed
	South 29				Lock
	South 30				Lock	Lockbourne	Franklin	Lockmeadows Park
					GNIS			GNIS 4 Carroll topographic map
					GNIS			GNIS 3 Amanda topographic map
					GNIS			GNIS 2 Ashville topographic map
					GNIS			GNIS 1 New Philadelphia topographic map
				Columbus Feeder East Guard	Lock
				Columbus Feeder West Guard	Lock
226	South 31			Ashville Campbells Mill	Lock
237	South 32			Aqueduct	Lock			Scioto River, West of Circleville
237				Circleville Feeder	Lock			Spunkytown
238	South 33				Lock			Wayne Township
238	South 34				Lock			Wayne Township
	South 35				Lock	Chillicothe, Ohio
256	South 36				Lock	Chillicothe, Ohio
258	South 37				Lock	Chillicothe, Ohio		parking lot
	South 38			Fifth Street	Lock	Chillicothe, Ohio
261	South 39			Upper Lunbeck	Lock
261	South 40			Lower Lunbeck	Lock	Scioto Township	Pickaway	near Renick Lane 601
	South 41			Tomlinsons	Lock			3 Locks Road, South of Chillicothe
	South 42			Tomlinsons	Lock
	South 43			Tomlinsons	Lock
				Tomlinsons Dam and Feeder Guard	Lock
	South 44			Waverly	Lock
280	South 45			U Pee Pee	Lock
280	South 46			L Pee Pee	Lock
291	South 47			Howards	Lock			near Robers Lock Farm
	South 48			Herod's	Lock
	South 49			Rushs Brush Creek	Lock
	South 50			Union Mills	Lock
	South 51			Union Mills Moss	Lock			near Ohio State Route 239
	South 52			Union Mills	Lock
305	South 53			Elbow	Lock
	South 54				Lock	Portsmouth	Scioto County
308	South 55				Lock		Scioto County	near Old River Road, Portsmouth/Alexandria

Travels through Cuyahoga, Summit, Stark, Licking, Franklin, Fairfield, Pickaway, and Scioto counties.

See also

• Canal Fulton, Ohio
• Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
• List of canals in the United States
• Miami and Erie Canal

Notes

References

General References

• National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior

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External links

• Ohio and Erie Canal National Heritage Corridor
• Ohio and Erie Canal Photo Essay
• An Inquisitive Visitor's Guide to the Ohio & Erie Canal and Towpath Trail
• And Steel, Concrete And Earth", Erin O'Brien , Cleveland Free Times, July 25, 2007
• Pictures around Waverly
• Southern Ohio Museum The Ackerman Collection of Historical Photographs