Module 4: Onsite TBD in August
The Erie Canal Today and in the Future
Canalside in Buffalo, NY
What is the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor?
The U.S. Congress recognized the Erie Canal’s significance to our nation by establishing the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor in 2000.
The Corridor spans 524 miles across the full expanse of upstate New York. It includes the Erie, Cayuga-Seneca, Oswego, and Champlain Canals and their historic alignments. The Corridor encompasses 4,834 square miles in 23 counties and is home to 2.7 million people.
Upstate New York’s largest population centers-- Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and the state capital Albany—all grew up along the canal and are within the Canalway Corridor today.
It’s our “park.” The federal government does not own or manage national heritage area lands as it does with traditional national parks. Instead, people, businesses, non-profit historical and environmental organizations, towns, cities, counties, and the State of New York work together to protect the Canalway Corridor and prepare for its future.
This partnership helps ensure that canals, towpaths, structures, and other historical and natural features remain preserved and accessible to you and to thousands of others who visit each year.
The U.S. Congress recognized the Erie Canal’s significance to our nation by establishing the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor in 2000.
The Corridor spans 524 miles across the full expanse of upstate New York. It includes the Erie, Cayuga-Seneca, Oswego, and Champlain Canals and their historic alignments. The Corridor encompasses 4,834 square miles in 23 counties and is home to 2.7 million people.
Upstate New York’s largest population centers-- Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and the state capital Albany—all grew up along the canal and are within the Canalway Corridor today.
It’s our “park.” The federal government does not own or manage national heritage area lands as it does with traditional national parks. Instead, people, businesses, non-profit historical and environmental organizations, towns, cities, counties, and the State of New York work together to protect the Canalway Corridor and prepare for its future.
This partnership helps ensure that canals, towpaths, structures, and other historical and natural features remain preserved and accessible to you and to thousands of others who visit each year.
NYS Archives Erie Canal Time Machine Resources
Niagara County Historical Society Lesson Plans for Grade 4 Unit 6
Flight Of Five Resotration Grant
lockport_wins_federal_grant_to_aid_in_erie_canal_lock_restoration_|_local_news_|_buffalonews.com.pdf | |
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Buffalo News Replica Canal Boat Construction
building_canal_boat_replica_was_labor_of_love_for_volunteers_|_local_news_|_buffalonews.com.pdf | |
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Buffalo News Replica Canal Boat Launch in Lockport
replica_canal_boat_proves_seaworthy_at_launch_in_lockport_|_local_news_|_buffalonews.com.pdf | |
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CBS Sunday Morning Visits the Erie Canal in Lockport
Walking Tour of Lockport: 9am-12pm
The Erie Canal Discovery Center is a new state-of-the-art interpretive center for the Erie Canal, and particularly the role that Lockport, NY played in the history of the Erie Canal.
It features the 13′ x 20′ Raphael Beck mural, “The Opening of the Erie Canal, October 26, 1825.” This beautiful floor to ceiling mural depicts the celebration surrounding then NY Governor Dewitt Clinton’s ceremonial first passage through the now famous “Flight of Five” locks in Lockport to officially open the Erie Canal.
Individuals from the painting “come to life” with the assistance of virtual-reality, through computer kiosks in the Center. A multidimensional orientation film transports the visitor back in time on board a recreation of the packet boat Western Comet.
Additional audiovisual stations such as the “Hard Rock Canal” and “Work the Lock” allow guests the hands-on opportunity to view the dolomite rock wall in Lockport and to navigate a model ship through an actual working series of locks.
The life and times of “canawlers,” people who lived and worked on the canal, as well as “canal kids,” are depicted in exhibits that feature the latest technology in communication “sound-sticks.”
The Erie Canal Discovery Center is located at 24 Church St., Lockport, NY. Phone: 716.439.0431
Walking Tour Highlights include:
It features the 13′ x 20′ Raphael Beck mural, “The Opening of the Erie Canal, October 26, 1825.” This beautiful floor to ceiling mural depicts the celebration surrounding then NY Governor Dewitt Clinton’s ceremonial first passage through the now famous “Flight of Five” locks in Lockport to officially open the Erie Canal.
Individuals from the painting “come to life” with the assistance of virtual-reality, through computer kiosks in the Center. A multidimensional orientation film transports the visitor back in time on board a recreation of the packet boat Western Comet.
Additional audiovisual stations such as the “Hard Rock Canal” and “Work the Lock” allow guests the hands-on opportunity to view the dolomite rock wall in Lockport and to navigate a model ship through an actual working series of locks.
The life and times of “canawlers,” people who lived and worked on the canal, as well as “canal kids,” are depicted in exhibits that feature the latest technology in communication “sound-sticks.”
The Erie Canal Discovery Center is located at 24 Church St., Lockport, NY. Phone: 716.439.0431
Walking Tour Highlights include:
- Erie Canal Discovery Center Tour
- Erie Canal Museum
- Penney Gallery Tour
- Flight of 5 Tour
- Locks 34 & 35 Tour