C&O Canal Terminus

C&O Canal Terminus. C&O Canal N.H.P., Maryland. , The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was planned to link the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay with Pittsburgh and the Ohio River Valley. Construction began at Georgetown in 1828; by 1850 only 184 of the 365 miles were complete. Financial difficulties, construction delays, and competition from the faster, more efficient railroads brought new construction to a halt, and Cumberland became the western terminus of the C&O Canal. The city was a hub of trade activity as lumber, coal, grain, and produce were shipped by canal to Georgetown. Finished products and store goods were brought back on the return trip. , (captions) , The C&O Canal and its basins had an extensive water system at Cumberland. After a destructive flood in 1924, canal operations ceased; later much of the area was filled in and (unreadable) an industrial site. , This 1870s photograph of the busy terminus overlooks a wharf and canal boats waiting to load. Church spires in the distance are still visible on the Cumberland hillside today. , Teams of two or three mules hitched to the 100 ft.tow lines pulled the canal boats along at 4 mph. Relief teams were stabled on board. , Railroads brought coal from the mountains of Pennsylvania and West Virginia to the wharves of Cumberland. Hoppers were pulled over the boats and opened; coal poured through chutes into the holds, where men distributed the coal into corners. Boats carried a maximum of 126 tons. , Over 500 Boats navigated the C&O Canal at its peak in the 1870s. All C&O boats were built in the boatyards of Cumberland (circa 1900s photograph, Shriver Basin). Boatyards were active all year; emergency repairs were made during the boating season, and boats were caulked and repainted in the fall. , Typical canal boats were 92 feet long and 14.5 feet wide, designed to fit into the locks which were 98 feet by 15 feet.