In the early 1900's New York State decided that the canals were too important to lose. They began to build an entire new canal system to replace the old canals. Barges carrying up to 3,000 tones can use them. T he New York State Barge Canal, made up of the Erie, Champlain, Oswego, and Cayuga-Seneca Falls Canals, is one of the world's greatest inland waterway systems. Commercial barges still use the waterways, coming up from New York Harbor, delivering their cargo to Montreal or Great Lakes ports.
Recreational boaters travel the canals by the hundreds of thousands each summer.
B esides the boaters, people of New York use the canal system as a source of hydroelectric power, flood control, irrigation for farms, and fresh water supplies. From the booklet Welcome Aboard the Urger - a Floating Classroom of New York State Waterways History. Credits Back to our home page.