Industrial Growth / Canalway Trail

Industrial Growth, also, Canalway Trail. . , Industrial Growth (marker front panel), The Erie Canal encouraged settlers to establish farms and helped small upstate towns become economically viable. Plants and mills built near the canal to process farm produce diversified to meet the needs of growing populations, and manufacturing economies soon developed., Canastota, founded in the early 1800s, had an agricultural economy based on products like onions and celery. But in the 1870s, the town experienced a burst of industrial growth. The Canastota Knife Company was established in 1874 and Godey Knitting in 1875. In 1876, Barret Steam Mill opened, and in 1880, Lindley Boats. The Canastota Glass Works began in 1881, Hubbard Canning in 1882, and 1893 saw the opening of Watson's Wagons., By the early twentieth century, Canastota was a thriving industrial town with a diversified manufacturing base that produced farm equipment, boats, gasoline engines, dumping wagons, film equipment, rakes, and cut glass., Don't Forget These Canal Sites: , . Canastota Canal Town Museum (here) , . Erie Canal Museum – Syracuse , . Camillus Erie Canal Park , . Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum , . Erie Canal Village – Rome, Canalway Trail : Old Erie Canal State Park (marker back panel), Welcome to the Canalway Trail System, offering hundreds of miles of scenic trails and numerous parks for walking, bicycling, cross-country skiing and other recreational activities. The Canalway Trail parallels the New York State Canal System, comprised of four historic waterways: the Erie, the Champlain, the Oswego and the Cayuga-Seneca Canals. The Canal System spans 524 miles across New York State, linking the Hudson River with Lake Champlain, Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes, the Niagara River and Lake Erie., Cooperative initiatives between the New York State Canal Corporation, volunteers, local governments, and federal and state agencies have created this great network of trails for public use.