Off this point in the Elizabeth River is the zero mile buoy marking the beginning of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. In colonial times water transportation was the principal mode for moving cargo. The idea of a canal connecting the Elizabeth River in Virginia with the Albemarle Sound in North Carolina originated with Colonel William Byrd II of Virginia in 1728 when he was surveying the Virginia-North Carolina border. The Dismal Swamp Canal was authorized by Virginia in 1787 and by North Carolina in 1790. Construction began in 1793. The Canal was complete in 1805 but was so shallow that it could be used only by small flat bottomed boats. Widening and deepening were completed in 1828. A second canal, the Albemarle and Chesapeake, was authorized in 1772, but construction did not begin until 1855. When it opened in 1859, the Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal could accommodate larger vessels and increased waterway traffic. Both canals are part of the Intracoastal Waterway today, providing inland passage for both commercial vessels and pleasure boats.

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Show me all markers in:  Norfolk, VA  |  23510  |  Virginia  |  United States of America

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Surveying the Land & Sea

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