Commerce at the Canal Basin

Commerce at the Canal Basin. Patterson Boulevard Canal Parkway. , Before the construction of the Miami Erie Canal, Main Street was Dayton's commercial center. The opening of the canal shifted commercial activity to the canal basin, with businesses, mills and hotels opening on the canal banks. The canal provided the initial impetus for Dayton to become an industrial city. In 1820, the population of Dayton was steady with about 1,000 residents. In 1830, just two years after the opening of the Miami Canal, the population was almost 3,000, and in 1850, five years after the completion of the Miami Erie Canal, it stood at about 10,000 residents., [Caption:] , The Canal Basin, looking north from Third Street towards the Second Street bridge, late-nineteenth century. Canal Street is to the right (east) and Cooper Park is to the west. Buildings south of Second Street - Union Horse Collar and Net Company, Houseman Horse Collar Machinery, and the Leaf Tobacco Warehouse have since been removed to make room for a parking lot. The G. Stomps Chair Warehouse building has also been demolished.