USA > Vermont > The Lake Champlain and Lake George valleys, Vol II > Part 15
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The earliest roads in this area were of military origin. Wherever an army proposed to go, a wide path was cut through the wilderness. William Johnson first made a road to Lake George from the settlements farther south in order to proceed to the head of that waterway to erect a fort. General Amherst was primarily responsible for the building of the Crown Point Military Road in 1759 and 1760, con- necting Lake Champlain with the Connecticut River at Charlestown (Number Four), New Hampshire. This never was of great military importance, but a large number of the settlers on both sides of the Champlain Valley came over it from the more crowded sections of New England. After the military roads came the turnpikes, named from the toll gates, called turnpikes, where tolls were collected to defray the cost of building them and keeping them in repair. These were of great importance because they made roads practicable where they could not have been built otherwise and they also made the early establishment of stagecoach lines possible. They were financed and controlled by private individuals or corporations, and together with bridge-building, became a craze by 1800. Although they were of great importance they had their limitations. They were not kept in good repair always and riding over them was decidedly rough. Treacherous ground, falling trees, high river banks and dangerous fords made travel perilous. There were few four-wheeled wagons in all New England until after the War of 1812, while as late as 1820 there were few in northern New York. The roads were of various types, some being gravel, some composed of planks, while others were built of logs. This last was appropriately named the
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corduroy road. The logs were placed close together across the road- way and then covered lightly with earth. It was of course extremely rough, not only laming the horses, but also jolting wagons to pieces. On the other hand it provided a sure method of crossing swampy or low land where it was used most often.
Plank roads were an improvement, but they also had their draw- backs. Weather conditions were particularly menacing. Heavy showers were apt to wash the planks away. The timber would shrink, leaving gaps between, while they would also warp in startling fashion. As a result travel over them was decidedly noisy and jolt- ing. Planks on the Port Henry-Mineville road were of four-inch hemlock, from eight to ten feet in length.
Bridges were also of a primitive character. At first, a fallen tree or a log sometimes presented the sole means of crossing a small stream other than fording. Many bridges were corduroy. Others were only wide enough for horses. More often, however, there were no bridges at all. Those that did exist tended to decay rapidly because they were at the mercy of the weather, although this situation was finally partially remedied by covering them. It was also a common occurrence for them to be washed away during the spring floods. Like ferries and plank roads their operation was generally by private indi- viduals and corporations, although this was not always so. One rea- son for the tardy construction of bridges was that it was feared they would interfere with navigation on the larger streams. This was par- ticularly true of the Hudson. According to MacGill ("History of Transportation in the United States Before 1860"), the first bridge that crossed the Hudson was at Waterford, while the second was at Fort Miller. Both were toll bridges, the former connecting the counties of Saratoga and Rensselaer and the latter connecting Sara- toga and Washington counties. It was not until 1856, however, that the New York Legislature authorized the construction of a bridge at Albany.
Considering land transportation as a whole there was more or less steady improvement going on. In spite of the numerous bad features that certainly existed when judged by our present standards, each decade offered better facilities than the preceding one. The adverse criticisms were by both foreigners and native Americans. Gillespie, an authority on roads in this country, went so far as to state
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that our roads were inferior to those of any other civilized nation, stressing their faults as being "those of direction, of slopes, of shape, of surface, and generally of deficiency in all the attributes of good roads." More favorable comment from foreign observers was awarded to our skillful drivers, our rapid transportation and the superiority of our carriages than to any other aspects of early travel, yet most of us would undoubtedly have preferred not to ride in the early coaches, at least for any considerable distance. On the whole, early transportation was as good as could reasonably have been expected in view of the lack of labor and capital, characteristic of a newly-settled area. In particular, the period prior to 1820 was one of great expansion, new territory being opened up with almost unbelievable rapidity. No one could reasonably have expected road building to keep pace. After 1820 roads were sometimes neglected solely because of carelessness, the pioneers allowing them to deteriorate because of the greater ease of water transportation, especially in the early canal era.
Transportation costs were extremely uncertain. To a consider- able extent, each customer made his own bargain. The amount charged varied in accordance with the condition of the roads at a particular time. When the weather was bad, rates were higher than otherwise. The entire business was in a disorganized and chaotic con- dition. In 1800 one traveler paid nine dollars to travel seventy-two miles from Albany to Whitehall, while it cost two and one-half dollars to cross Lake Champlain. We also have a record of the shipment of a ton of merchandise from New York City to Willsboro on Lake Champlain in 1783. The expense from New York to Albany was sixteen shillings; for cartage in Albany- four shillings; from Albany to Lake George-six pounds, eight shillings ; storage at Lake George-one shilling; transportation over Lake George-sixteen shillings; cartage to Lake Champlain-six shillings; storage at Lake Champlain-two shillings; transportation over Lake Champlain-one pound; and for loss and contingencies- one pound and two shillings. The total cost was eleven pounds, or $53.46, the charge averaging eighteen cents per mile. Transporta- tion was not only very expensive, but also very slow. In 1784 it took Plattsburgh's famous Zephaniah Platt sixteen days to obtain some sup- plies from New York City. On that occasion, six and one-half days vere consumed in moving the cargo up the Hudson to Fort Edward.
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From there it was carried to Lake George by ox-carts, down that water- way in bateaux, over the portage to Lake Champlain in carts, and the remainder of the trip by bateaux again. By this time the early routes of transportation must be obvious. The main centers of trade for this region were Montreal, Quebec, Troy, Albany, and Boston. The northern routes were almost exclusively by the waterways. In the southern part this was not so despite the fact that rivers continued to be of great importance. Although southwestern Vermont had water routes to Troy, the important part that this city played in the early economic life of this area was partly due to the fact that the roads leading to the Hudson were in such excellent condition for those times.
Travel and transportation were much easier in the winter than in the summer. When snow and ice smoothed over the rough roads, sleighs were very comfortable and rapid when compared with warm weather vehicles. Also by midwinter the lakes were plains of ice over which long trains of sleighs moved ceaselessly back and forth. The wintry winds sweeping up Lake Champlain from the frozen northland were not always exactly enjoyable but in general this impedi- ment was preferable to the obstacles encountered in the summer.
Stagecoach lines were first established in Vermont at the very beginning of the nineteenth century. At first these vehicles were extremely crude and uncomfortable but, as time went on, gave way to the famous Concord coaches. The earliest stages were various- shaped affairs, consisting of a long car with four benches. Each of the three benches in the interior was supposed to accommodate three passengers, while there was room for a tenth on the front seat with the driver. The only entrance was over the driver's seat and the passengers who used the back bench had to climb over three of them to get to their own. There were no backs to the benches to rest the weary traveler, neither was there any space for his luggage except under the seat or his legs. There was a light roof supported by eight slender pillars, four on each side. There were also three large leather curtains attached to the roof, one on each side and the third behind. They could be rolled up or lowered at the pleasure of the passengers, but were not much protection against wind, rain, or the cold weather. By contrast, the Concord coaches were much more comfortable. The roof was used for baggage, and finally for passengers as well. There was more room and more comfort inside. Outside seats were, of
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course, the favored ones when the weather was fair; but if a shower came up the passengers on top were not to be envied. There was no turning back, and no places of shelter along the road. To describe a trip on a Concord coach we cannot do better than to quote from that picturesque historian, Stoddard, who told of a ride he took from Glens Falls to Lake George in 1872 :
"Now all is confusion; bundles are hastily gathered up; babies are sorted, and sallying forth under a triumphal arch of whips we are cordially greeted thereof, and pressingly invited to take a free ride with them. Coaches for any part of the village; coaches for the hotels; coaches for Lake George, and coaches for the Adirondacks, are there. Everyone is asking questions which nobody finds time to answer; would-be passengers jostle against each other; runners shout, drivers swear, boys hoot and laugh, seeming to enjoy the scene, while loungers encourage the competitors and applaud the victors in the race, as, with frantic haste, like sailors boarding the ship of an enemy, they charge on the lake coaches and swarm up over the wheel to gain the much coveted outside seat. Perhaps you split your best coat open down the back reaching for the railing; drop your umbrella, cane, good manners, and a little swear or two; but what of that ? By a desperate effort you reach the top. Then breathlessly, and with a sigh of infinite relief, you slide into the only remaining seat, just as a young lady, with an eye to the same place, flutters con- tentedly down in your lap. Of course you ought to give it up and walk, if needs be, but you don't; you compromise, however, and condense, and by a little judicious squeezing, and with harmony and other articles restored-proceed on your ride 'over the hills and far away' through the pure fragrant air, with the coach swinging and swaying about, threatening all with apparent destruction, so that it is only by clinging firmly to your fair partner, that she is saved from an untimely death."
Not so pleasant was a trip that John Lambert described between Burlington and St. Albans :
"I had an uncomfortable seat in the hind part of the wagon upon the mail bag and other goods. I might, indeed, have sat in front along with the driver, but my legs would have been cramped between a large chest and the fore part of the wagon. Of two evils I chose
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the least; but I shall never forget the shaking, jolting, jumbling and tossing, which I experienced over this disagreeable road, up and down steep hills, which obliged me to alight (for we had only two poor jaded horses to drag us), and fag through the sand and dust exposed to a burning sun. When we got into our delectable vehicle again, our situation was just as bad; for the road in many parts was continually obstructed by large stones; stumps of trees, and fallen timber; deep ruts and holes, over which, to use an American phrase, we were 'wag- gon'd most unmercifully.'"
Between competing companies there was, of course, much rivalry. For this reason as many as eight horses were sometimes used. Rac- ing was dangerous, particularly on the narrow plank roads. Even though the drivers were as a rule old experienced hands that under- stood their business thoroughly, a little veering was enough to pro- duce a wreck. In the early days it was not unusual for purses of money to be made up by the occupants of a coach to encourage the driver to try to pass the others. Aside from the pride of arriving at one's destination first, there was also the decided advantage of not being compelled to continually inhale the dust from other coaches. These races, however, were often the cause of serious accidents, and eventually regulations were enforced to prevent passing on the narrow-gauge plank roads.
At one time there were four stagecoach lines connecting Troy with Montreal, according to Hyde ("History of Glens Falls"). They ran by way of Bennington, Salem, Greenwich and Saratoga. Peter Comstock, for whom Comstock village was named, owned the Green- wich route. It is said that he determined to increase his business in cool weather by equipping each coach with a stove. In the words of Hyde, "All went well on the first two trips and things looked favor- able for travel on the west side of Lake Champlain but on the next trip the stage was caught in a heavy snow storm and unfortunately lost its center of gravity, precipitating passengers and the well heated stove into the ditch. The straw in the bottom of the sleigh caught fire, the passengers getting more heat than they had bargained for and, while none were injured, the sleigh and part of the baggage were destroyed, thus ending a noble experiment."
Castleton, Vermont, was an important center of the stage busi- ness in southern Vermont, west of the Green Mountains. Not only
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was it on the New York-Montreal route, but also on the line from Boston to Saratoga and Buffalo.
Next let us consider the canal era. We have already pointed out the fact that, at first, the chief market for Champlain Valley products was Canada. It is not surprising, therefore, to discover that far back in the 1780's Vermonters, particularly Ira Allen, actively agitated the project of constructing a canal from the lake to the St. Law- rence. Allen made a trip to England with the object of interesting the British government in the idea, offering, under certain conditions, to cut the canal at his own expense. He was unsuccessful, however, in this effort. Neither was he successful in enlisting Vermont in the enterprise, though he continued to actively support the idea. Finally, in 1843, a canal was completed around the rapids of the Richelieu River between Chambly Basin and St. Johns, a distance of twelve miles. This Chambly Canal was ultimately increased in size so that it had a draught of six and one-half feet. Its surface breadth is now sixty feet, while at the bottom it is thirty-six feet. At St. Ours another canal, one-eighth of a mile long and of similar dimensions, was also dug. As a result, the dreams of the early Vermonters centering around water transportation to the St. Lawrence were realized to a certain extent. Today there are plenty of proponents of a larger and deeper route to the sea. In addition to the projected route to the St. Lawrence, plans were also made to build a canal from Rut- land to Windsor on the Connecticut River. Its primary purpose was to deflect to the east trade that was then going to Montreal and New York. Nothing came of this dream, however, because of the early completion of the Champlain Canal, which assured New York's hold on the products of the valley.
New York's interest in canals for this area also dates from the eighteenth century. In response to a speech by Governor George Clinton to the State Legislature in 1791 and due, also, to the support of General Philip Schuyler, of Saratoga County, a bill was passed in that year providing for surveys and estimates of costs to be made preparatory to further action. The Hudson River-Wood Creek route was included in this study. In the following year the Legisla- ture decided to incorporate two companies: the "Western Inland Lock Navigation Company," which was authorized to open lock navi- gation from the Hudson, by way of the Mohawk, to Lakes Ontario
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and Seneca ; and the "Northern Inland Lock Navigation Company " which was to perform a similar service between the Hudson and Lake Champlain. In a short time both companies were organized under the direction of General Schuyler. The former project was more suc- cessful than the latter, and was in that day of considerable value to the people of the State. Nothing much was ever done, however, in the north, construction being abandoned because of lack of funds.
Later, as the Champlain Valley became increasingly filled with pioneers, the need of water transportation between the Lake and the Hudson became gradually more acute. The lumber and iron resources and the great marble deposits were cited as arguments for the con- struction of a canal. Furthermore, the topography of the land over which Burgoyne's army had passed did not present great obstacles to such an undertaking. A preliminary survey was made of the route, and in 1817 the New York Legislature authorized the construction of the Champlain Canal, to extend from Waterford on the Hudson to Whitehall on Lake Champlain. Work was begun during the same year, and the canal was finally opened for traffic October 8, 1823. The first boat to pass through was the "Gleaner," a St. Albans' boat, carrying wheat and potash. Although it was compelled to wait at Waterford for a few days for the completion of locks, when it arrived in Troy it was greeted with an artillery salute and the own- ers were escorted by a procession to the Troy House, where a ban- quet was given in their honor.
That this canal was built at all was due in large measure to the vision of Governor DeWitt Clinton, who did more than any other to make his State canal-conscious. Canal building was at that time, and continued to be, a political football; but there is every reason to believe that this foremost apostle of inland waterways was primarily motivated by his faith in canals. There was a great amount of political maneuvering by the various sections of the State as they attempted to obtain the maximum economic benefit to themselves. Costs were apt to exceed estimates frequently, sometimes unavoid- ably, but often because of political contracts. In spite of all obstacles, however, Clinton's dream came true and New York, with the con- struction of the Erie, the Champlain, and other canals, has never had reason to regret it.
According to MacGill, the entire Champlain Canal was sixty-four miles long as originally constructed. Forty-six and one-half miles
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consisted of an artificial channel, while Wood Creek was used for six and one-half miles and the Hudson for eleven. From the Lake to the river there were six ascending and eleven descending locks. They were a foot narrower than the locks on the Erie, a blunder which did not favor the continuous navigation of the two canals. Beginning at Whitehall there was an immediate rise of twenty-six
THE EAST ESPLANADE OF THE HALL OF SPRINGS AT THE NEW SARATOGA SPA
feet by three locks. Another important rise took place at Fort Ann. Since then there has been considerable alteration and improvement. When the canal was opened, the summit level was fed from the Hud- son at Fort Edward by means of a feeder. To attain this level it was necessary to have a dam nine hundred feet long and twenty-eight feet high. In 1822 this dam was partly carried away but was repaired, the final cost being $92,000. There was then no canal from Fort Edward to Fort Miller, the boats passing from the canal to the
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river at the former place by means of three locks. Of vital impor- tance to Glens Falls, was the building of the feeder connecting that community with Fort Edward. It was surveyed in 1823 and begun in 1824. At first its sole purpose was to supply water to the main canal, but in 1832 it was opened to navigation. Until 1845 only one boat could pass through at a time, between frequent turnouts, but on that date the channel was widened so that boats had room to pass each other. Up to the time of the construction of the feeder, Caldwell (now Lake George) was the commercial center of Warren County, but with the impetus supplied by the connection with the Champlain Canal, Glens Falls began a sensational growth. Because of the fact that the accounts of the Erie and Champlain canals were kept in one fund the exact cost of either is unknown; but the canal commissioners estimated in 1828 that up to January 1, 1827, the cost of the Champlain was $1, 179,- 871.95, while that of the Erie was $9,027,456.05. The construction of a separate channel from Fort Edward to Schuylerville was begun in 1826 and completed in 1827.
A great improvement has taken place in this century. It looked at one time as if the railroads were rendering the canal obsolete and a widespread belief grew up that the waterways were no longer neces- sary. A commission was finally appointed to consider their abandon- ment. When it reported, however, in 1903, it urged not this expected policy, but rather that the canals should be enlarged in order to allow the passage of much larger boats, called barges. This important issue was presented to the people of the State, who cast a large majority in favor of the so-called "barge canal." Work was begun on the system in 1905, but was more expensive than planned. Due to this factor and to the political influence of the canals' competitors, construction was slow. When we note that the plans for the Champlain Canal called for the enlargement and deepening of the channel from Fort Edward to Whitehall so that it would be twelve feet deep, and seventy-five feet wide at the bottom, with locks three hundred and twenty-eight feet long and forty-five feet wide, admitting boats drawing ten or ten and one-half feet of water, carrying one thousand to fifteen hundred tons of freight, we can appreciate the vastness of the undertaking. The Hudson was also to be canalized from Waterford to Fort Edward. The State debt in 1914 was $159,000,000, of which over a hundred mil- lion had been caused by the canal improvements; yet in 1915 the
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people voted still more money to finish them. By 1927, the only states in the Union still operating canals were New York, Ohio, Illinois and Louisiana; while the only modern system was maintained by New York. Thus it is true that from the very beginning of the canal era right up to our present day this State's position has ever been preeminent in this particular field of inland waterway transportation. The barge canal system is in itself a tribute to Clinton's early vision.
According to French's Gazetteer, tolls on the Champlain Canal increased rapidly from $46,214.45 in 1824 to $73,615.26 in 1825, and $107,757.08 in 1828. Although the panic of 1837 and the arrival of the railroad were supposed to have spelled the doom of the canal, tolls in 1850 reached $133,969.43. From 1842 to 1866 the tonnage on the canal doubled every eight years. Up to 1866 the total tolls collected are said to have been $4,722,710. At that time the Champlain Canal was taxed to capacity and could not adequately meet the needs of the public. In 1882 the people of the State voted to abolish all tolls and since that time the use of the canals has been free.
The importance of the canal in the life of the entire Champlain Valley has been so tremendous that it is hard to grasp and appre- ciate it. With its opening in 1823, western Vermont and northeastern Vermont experienced a sensational economic boom. Industries flour- ished where none had existed before. The resources of the Cham- plain Valley, instead of heading for Canada, literally poured over the canal on the way to the New York market. During 1853, the collector's office at Glens Falls alone cleared 105,318 tons of exports. In 1864, Warren County alone shipped one million dollars' worth of the products of its tanneries over the canal. During that same year 103,000 tons of coal, and 140,029 tons of ore were shipped by canal. Although one firm brought 25,000 tons of coal over it for the manufacture of iron at Port Henry, the same concern shipped its product to Burlington and Boston because of the lack of facilities between Whitehall and Fort Edward. In 1867, Washington County alone shipped 800,000 bushels of potatoes by canal or rail, while in 1879 from 150 to 200 wagon loads per day were delivered at Fort Edward for canal shipment. In 1878, 24,038,960 feet of lumber was cleared at Whitehall. In 1887, 1,027 boats passed through Fort Edward in nineteen days in November. In 1880, there were eighty-
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