Miami & Erie Canal Deep Cut / Miami & Erie Canal

Miami & Erie Canal Deep Cut / Miami & Erie Canal (HMF3S)

Location: Spencerville, OH 45887 Washington County
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Country: United States of America
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N 40° 41.072', W 84° 21.931'

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Inscription

Anthony Wayne Parkway

Miami & Erie Canal, Deep Cut

You are on that section of the Miami and Erie Canal where the greatest excavation was made - a section that has been known over the years as "Deep Cut." The huge ditch, 6,600 feet long and 5 to 52 feet deep, was dug and blasted through the tough blue-clay ridge which separates the St. Marys watershed from that of the Auglaize.

Strong-muscled farm boys, brawny Irishmen, and sometimes convicts, sentenced to hard labor, toiled here with picks, shovels, and barrows, from sun-up to sun-down for 30 cents a day. They lived in shabby, unsanitary camps and were often ravaged by malaria and other diseases. Bad blood among the construction gangs and whisky, which "flowed like water," led to frequent brawls.

Spencer Township, Allen County, where this marker is located, and Spencerville, just to the north, are both named in honor of Colonel William Spencer, member of the State Board of Public Works which had charge of Ohio's canal system.

Miami & Erie Canal

This spot, not long ago, was the scene of bustling canal traffic. The clump of mules' hoofs along the tow path, the crack of the hard-bitten drivers' whips, and the creaking of the loaded packet and cargo boats were familiar sounds in this vicinity.

Governor DeWitt Clinton of New York and Governor Jeremiah Morrow of Ohio removed the first earth for the canal, July 21, 1825, just below Middletown. By 1845, boats were plying the "Big Ditch" from Cincinnati to Toledo.

In traversing the 249-mile canal, boats had to be raised to the Loramie Summit, 512 feet above the Ohio River, and then lowered 395 feet to the Lake Erie level. To accomplish this, 108 stone and wooden locks were built. To supply the canal with a constant flow of water, 3 large reservoirs and many river dams were constructed.

At the peak of operation, 400 boats plied the canal, providing Ohio with badly needed transportation. Cascading waters at the locks made the wheels of hundreds of mills and factories hum. The country through which the canal passed changed from a wilderness to an agricultural paradise. By the early 1900's, however, this colorful and profitable period had come to an end. The railroads had taken over.
Details
HM NumberHMF3S
Series This marker is part of the National Historic Landmarks series, and the The Miami & Erie Canal series.
Tags
Year Placed1961
Placed ByAllen County Historical Society, in cooperation with, The Anthony Wayne Parkway Board
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, October 13th, 2014 at 6:44pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)16T E 722629 N 4507076
Decimal Degrees40.68453333, -84.36551667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 40° 41.072', W 84° 21.931'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds40° 41' 4.32" N, 84° 21' 55.86" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)419
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 22960-22998 Township Hwy 55, Spencerville OH 45887, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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