| Start of construction |
1817 in Rome, NY |
| Grand Opening of Erie Canal |
1825 |
| Opening of Champlain Canal |
1823 |
| Length, Albany to Buffalo (original Erie Canal) |
363 miles |
| Number of locks, 1825 |
83 |
| Number of locks, present day |
57 |
| Elevation change, Albany to Buffalo |
573 feet |
| Canal dimensions, 1825 Original Erie |
4 ft deep x 40 ft wide |
| Canal dimensions, 1862 Enlarged Erie |
7 ft deep x 70 ft wide |
| Canal dimensions, 1918- present Barge Canal |
12-23 ft deep x 120-200 ft wide |
| Cost to build |
$7,143,789 |
| Return on Investment |
10 years |
| Number of aqueducts to bypass rivers and streams |
18 |
| Travel time from Albany to Buffalo, 1825 |
5 days |
| Travel time from Albany to Buffalo by Stagecoach |
2 weeks |
| Rate of pay for a canal laborer, 1825 |
80 cents - $1 per day |
| Year “Low Bridge, Everybody Down ” published by Tin Pan Alley songwriter Thomas Allen |
1905 |
