Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1888-02-09
THE GEHTAIIIl HISTORY Or OHIO.
B1 w.rARRAND FKIcH.
Copyrighted. Aurighis re,errsd.I ]

canals, but little attention was paid Il
lit. Private individuals had tried to ge
a charter for canal, but had failed anC
the Governor had also urged the. matte
in his message. On December 6, 1921
Micajah T. Williams, Of Cincinnati
laid a resolution on the clerks desk fo
the appointment of q committee Of five
to take into consideration that part o.
the Governors message that related t.
the subject of canals. The resolution
passed, and -Messrs. Williams, Howe
Thomas Worthington, w. III. Moore
and John Shelby were appointed OF
the committee. They attended strictly
10 their duty and on January 3, 1922
presented to the House an elaborate re
port recommending law authorizing
an examination into the practicability
of connecting Lake Erie with the Ohio
river by canal. The third reading anC
passage of the bill occurred January 81
1922. Commissioners were appointed
under the law and they in turn en-
ployed Hon. James Geddes, Of Onon'
daga county, New York, asan engineer
He arrived in Columbus in June, hav.
ing examined the Cdyahoga summit
Within eight months the line had been
surveyed and leveled. Every Other
preparation having been made, the
commissioners invited Dewitt Clinton,
| Governor of New York, to be present
at the commencement of the canals.
He arrived in June, 1926, and was
heartily welcomed by Governor Jere.
Morrow and the people of Ohio with
loud huzzas as the "Father Of internal
improvements
On the 4th of July, 1925, forty-nine
years the Declaration of Independence,
the canal was commenced. Says Atwa-
ter: "The day was fair as heart could
desire and the summit where the first
shoveful of earth vas to he excavated.
was three miles or more westwardly of
Newark. The underbrush was cleared
off from an acre or more in the
woods, near the summit, where, under
many wide-spreading beech trees, ta-
bles and seats were placed for the as
semblage to dine. Governor
Clinton, Governor Morrow and the
State officers went to the ground on
the summit and excavated each few
shovefuls of earth. After this cere-
mony was performed, these officers re-
tired to rude platform under shade,
where, being seated, Thomas Ewing,
Esq, our late United States Senator,
delivered an address on the occasion to
the people and to Governor Clinton.
This address was replied to by Governor
Clinton, who was repeatedly inter-
rupted by the loud huZzas of the thous-
ands there assembled. AS soon as his
address was finished one burst of uni
versal applause from all present fol-
lowed it. One hundred guns told
the world that the canal was begun.
At these demonstrations of respect
and gratitude, spontaneously given,
Governor Clinton wept."
The Ohio and Erie canal could scarce
ly be said to have been completed until
1872, nor the Miami and Maumee
canal from the Ohio river to Dayton
until 1884, when the locks at Cincinnati
were finished.
The commissioners named in the act
of January 81, 1922, were Benjamin
Tappan, Alfred Kelley, Thomas Worth
ington, Ethan Allen Brown, jeremiah,
Morrow, Isaac Minor and Eben. Buck
ingham, jr. Morrow having been elect
ed Governor, resigned and M. J. Will
Iiams was appointed in his place. AT
ter the canals were fairly under way,
Kelley and Williams were appointed
acting commissioners, under whose
the canals were con-
The total disbursements for
to December l, 1882, amounted
to $5, 1853, 1924; the aggregate length of
canals then constructed and owned by
the State amounted to 400 miles, COM
prising 1874 lift-locks, overcoming a
total amount of ascent and descent of
1,547 feet; guard locks; % aqueducts;
214 culverts, 1872 of which are of stone,
60 of wood; dams for crossing streams,
and IL feeder dams. These statistics
are of Importance for comparison with
later figures. The Ohio and Erie canal
from Portsmouth to Cleveland was
finished in 1872. 1t is 800 miles long.
The side cut from Lockbourne to
Columbus is eleven miles in length.
There are other canals connected with
the main line at Carrollton, at Dres-
den, at Roscoe, at Bolivar, at Akron,
etc. The Miami canal connects with
the great Wabash canal of Indiana,
thence down the Maumee valley. The
canal system has seen its best days long
ago and is now in its dOtage, since the
growing of railroad facili-
ties has made the State one of the great
est in the Union.
The Mercer county reservoir, the
largest body of artificial water in the
State and perhaps in the United States
was built at some hazard. Long before
it was located some happy adventures
had settled within the prairie now
forming the reservoir. In 1880 an
engineer ran the first line around the
reservoir; it was thought that the bank
could be constructed for 100000. In
1887, the line was again run, compass
ing $4,000 acres. Justin Hamilton, the
member of the Legislature for Mercer
county, introduced resolution into that
body which passed it unanimously,
"that no water should be let into the
reservoir before the same should be
cleared of timber and the parties paid
for their lands" This resolution was
in force when the bank was cut and the
land overfowed. There had been an
appropriation of $40, 900 to pay for the
lands submurged, but it had been
squandered by the officers and specula-
tors. This outrage was to much too be
borne by the gritty bloods of Mercer
county. Says Knapp: "Wars have
been declared or less pretences.
Mercer county declared that she would
not be imposed upon by the thieving
birds of Ohio.n Judge Linzec was sent
to Piqua, the head of the Board of Pub
lie Works to lay their grievances before
that body, but he was met with the
sneering reply, "Help yourselves if YOU