Canal Builders

Canal Builders. Engineers, Craftsmen, Laborers. , The State of Ohio mobilized a work force – as many as 2,000 a day – to build the Ohio and Erie Canal. The project became an extension of the Erie Canal. Ohio borrowed money from New York investors. Engineers surveyed the route and adapted Erie Canal construction plans to suit their terrain challenges., The workforce included local farmers as well as Irish and German immigrants who had worked on the Erie Canal. They dug the canal ditch, shaped the towpath, and built the locks, gates, culverts, aqueducts, bridges, and dams., Conditions were harsh, especially in low, wet areas. Malaria, typhoid, and cholera were common. Wages started at $8 per month for 26 days from sunrise to sunset, plus food and housing in shanties., [Captions:] , Men used picks and shovels to dig the canal’s ditch and shape its sides and towpath., In the quarries, masons usually carved a symbol on stone blocks they had cut. Marks helped foremen keep track of the amount and quality of each mason’s work. Lock closely at Lock 29’s walls for Roman numeral mason marks., Photography did not exist when the canal was built, but these historic photos show the building process.