1993 Wabash and Erie Canal map by Tom Castaldi, used with permission, was printed on page 15 in the September 2005 Allen County Lines periodical for the Allen County Genealogical Society of Indiana.
Hope everyone enjoyed Christmas. See you at 1pm for the walk today!
Here's a bit of canal history, contributed by our friend and historian, Tom Castaldi.
By December, it was not uncommon for the water in the canal in northern Indiana to ice over...and why boat navigation was suspended until the following spring. However, an enterprising Fort Wayne couple, Dr. and Mrs. Charles A. Schmitz, back in June of 1840, arranged for a Christmas tree to be sent to Fort Wayne, Indiana, from a supplier in Cincinnati, Ohio. The tree arrived on a canal boat, and on Christmas Eve it was festooned with lighted candles and glittering ornaments. Near the tree in a basket, the proud Schmitz couple placed their infant daughter, and guests from all around were invited in for a holiday celebration. Among the guests that Christmas Eve were a number of local Native Americans who were delighted with the beautifully decorated tree, and thoroughly admired the infant they found there.
By 1840 the Wabash & Erie Canal had extended from Fort Wayne to Lafayette, Indiana. Lafayette was not connected with Lake Erie at Toledo, Ohio until 1843. That meant that if, as historians have reported, the doctor's Christmas tree had been delivered from Cincinnati by canal boat, it must have traveled on a few roads as well. By 1840, the Miami Erie Canal, destined to join the Wabash & Erie, had reached Piqua, Ohio, not far north of Cincinnati. It did not join the Wabash Erie Canal at Junction, Ohio, until 1848. How that Christmas tree got to Fort Wayne from Cincinnati is not told by the historians, only that it arrived on the Canal. One possibility is that it might have traveled on the National Road to Indianapolis, north on the Michigan Road through Carroll County Indiana, to Logansport...and there placed on a Wabash Erie canal freighter to Fort Wayne.;
Two Seasons: Throughout Indiana, winter's low temperatures froze the Wabash Erie Canal and free movement in the water within the 40 feet width from towpath to berm bank came to a halt. Each year the change of seasons transformed the canal into a solid sheet of shimmering ice, perfect for horse drawn sleigh travel through a winter wonderland. Surly it was a delight for all who ordinarily were accustomed to slow, rough cart and wagon rides. Ice skaters too could enjoy the smooth surfaces for the fulfillment of their sport. An old illustration by Wils Berry depicts a frozen Eel River at Logansport (Ind.) providing an ice skaters' haven beneath the canal aqueduct on the Eel. Overhead a span of the frozen water-filled aqueduct trunk is graced with long Icicles hanging low. Such scenes were no doubt repeated under the aqueduct at Saint Mary's River in Fort Wayne or on the wide turn basin at Delphi or the landing at Huntington. - Tom Castaldi
Making it over Barriers
(contributed by historian, Tom Castaldi)
For centuries people used waterways to travel from the Great Lakes to the St. Lawrence, but they were faced with crossing a land barrier between the Maumee River (at Fort Wayne) and the Wabash River. It’s part of the Continental Divide and is known as a “Portage” or the “Carrying Place,” usually described as nine miles in length. More specifically it joined the navigable portions of the Saint Mary’s River - which flows via the Maumee into Lake Erie - and the Little Wabash River that empties into the Wabash ultimately meeting the Mississippi. It has been a strategic location for all of our history. The great Miami Chief Richardville was heard to say it was used to ascend the Wabash to the Portage and then descend the St. Mary’s and the Maumee to Lake Erie. He continued that when the water was high and the marshy area between the Little Wabash and the St. Mary’s was flooded, and boats could literally be pushed across thus achieving an all-water travel from Lake Erie to Vincennes without unloading. As early as 1784, George Washington encouraged studying the Portage to be crossed by a water route that ultimately became a reality we know as the Wabash Erie Canal.
A bit of Canal history from our friend, historian Tom Castaldi:
"During cold months such as December, the canal water could be frozen over and boat movement on the water suspended until the following spring. Judge Samuel Hanna, considered the man who made the Wabash Erie Canal a reality, served in the Indiana Legislature. It was Hanna who pointed out the practicality of a canal, and along with David Burr, began the correspondence with the Indiana law makers. Later, Hanna, Burr and another literally surveyed the feeder canal that convinced the legislature to proceed.
Hanna's daughter once told the story of her mother, Eliza Taylor Hanna, having received a telegraph at midnight during a cold wintery month. It was from Indianapolis and news was that her legislator husband Samuel had been taken seriously ill. She wasted no time in securing a sleigh and traveling along the canal towpath from Fort Wayne to Logansport, Indiana, intending no doubt to take the Michigan Road south to Indianapolis. When she reached Logansport, she received a message that her husband had made a recovery, however, she continued on her trip to Indianapolis and spent the winter there with her husband."
Here's another interesting historical tidbit from our friend, historian Tom Castaldi...
Travelin’ Time and Fares The Wabash Erie Canal between Lafayette and Fort Wayne was opened in 1840 and by 1843 the Canal had reached Lake Erie at Toledo. However, before the line was opened across Ohio in 1842, one eastern lady passenger traveling to Peru, Indiana, wrote a letter published by the Fort Wayne News Sentinel dated October 22, 1935: “at 8 o’clock we were up the Maumee River, ready to take the Canal at Toledo. We came on about 18 miles, then we had to go about 32 miles by land. We went about 14 miles, then we put up for the night. Then we went on to the Canal and stayed on the Canal until we got to Peru. It is more expensive traveling on the packets than it is on the steamboats.” The article continued with examples of the costly travel of 1842: “Packet boat fares for passengers were established as follows: Fort Wayne to Toledo, 104 miles $3.25; to Lafayette 138 miles, $3.75.” What’s that a reminder of…the price of a gallon of gas in 2013?
Without the Wabash-Erie Canal, would Fort Wayne have boomed? Columnist Tom Castaldi tells the tale.
The Wabash & Erie Canal was a rough-and-tumble place, but Capt. Mary Ann Martin was master of two boats until the very end. Historian Tom Castaldi tells her story. Featured in the February issue of Fort Wayne Magazine.
Pirogues are hollowed out from thirty to sixty foot long logs, these tree trunk boats brought families and cargo up the Maumee River from Toledo and Detroit, and returned with furs to Lake Erie in exchange for traders’ supplies. Read more on Pirogue Landing by Tom Castaldi published January 16, 2014 on History Center Notes & Queries blog.
Can you imagine the area around the I-65/IN-25 intersection being underwater? That may have been the reality during the Canal Era! Joining us for a short explainer over on TikTok is Allen County Historian Tom Castaldi.
When the Wabash & Erie Canal crossed a natural waterway, there needed to be a structure to cross safely. At the Wildcat Creek, engineers completed a dam in 1843 that created a large slack water (where water backed up and created a "lake”) where towing animals could easily pull canal boats across.
One of the most fascinating things about canal history is that we are still finding new sites and unraveling new mysteries that have been lost to the 150 years since the Wabash & Erie Canal shut down. A big part of our mission is to preserve these stories so future generations can enjoy learning them!
How did canal boats manage to float UP to Fort Wayne and then back DOWN to Lake Erie when the Wabash & Erie Canal was in...
How did canal boats manage to float UP to Fort Wayne and then back DOWN to Lake Erie when the Wabash & Erie Canal was in its prime? Read more on our blog from Allen County Historian Tom Castaldi's latest Canal Notes... Canal Notes: A Lock Is A Box [ interesting discussion in the Comments on how did surveyors determine the canal path through the unforgiving terrain of 19th Century primeval Indiana ]
A huge part of what makes Indiana special is its water resources! 💧 In the 19th century it took a canal to harness...
A huge part of what makes Indiana special is its water resources!
In the 19th century it took a canal to harness that wealth and make it easily accessible and useful for Hoosiers. Read more on our blog from Allen County Historian Tom Castaldi... Canal Notes: Wild Water
The people who make the greatest difference are often those who diligently and quietly work behind the scenes! Read Tom...
The people who make the greatest difference are often those who diligently and quietly work behind the scenes! Read Tom Castaldi's Canal Notes about Jesse Williams, the chief engineer who steadily built the Wabash & Erie Canal amidst enormous challenges: Canal Notes: Williams Way
Read more on our blog from Allen County Historian Tom Castaldi's latest Canal Notes... Canal Notes: A Lock Is A Box [ interesting discussion in the Comments on how did surveyors determine the canal path through the unforgiving terrain of 19th Century primeval Indiana ]
