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  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  George 
  Geddes 
  states 
  that 
  DeWitt 
  was 
  a 
  man 
  of 
  caution, 
  dealing 
  

   in 
  facts, 
  and 
  had 
  little 
  or 
  nothing 
  of 
  the 
  extraordinary 
  in 
  his 
  

   nature. 
  Gouverneur 
  Morris 
  was 
  a 
  man 
  of 
  entirely 
  different 
  

   stamp. 
  He 
  had 
  traveled 
  in 
  Europe 
  and 
  knew 
  the 
  utility 
  of 
  canals, 
  

   and 
  had 
  long 
  maintained 
  the 
  opinion 
  that 
  ships 
  would 
  ultimately 
  

   sail 
  from 
  London 
  up 
  the 
  Hudson 
  and 
  across 
  country 
  to 
  Lake 
  Erie. 
  

   Mr 
  Morris 
  had 
  expressed 
  as 
  early 
  as 
  1777 
  his 
  views 
  in 
  regard 
  to 
  

   internal 
  improvements. 
  At 
  that 
  time 
  he 
  said: 
  "At 
  no> 
  distant 
  

   day, 
  the 
  waters 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  western 
  inland 
  seas 
  will, 
  by 
  the 
  aid 
  

   of 
  man, 
  break 
  through 
  their 
  barriers 
  and 
  mingle 
  with 
  those 
  of 
  

   the 
  Hudson." 
  

  

  In 
  1800 
  Mr 
  Morris 
  Stated 
  : 
  " 
  One-tenth 
  of 
  the 
  expense 
  borne 
  

   by 
  Britain 
  in 
  the 
  last 
  campaign 
  would 
  enable 
  ships 
  to 
  sail 
  from 
  

   London, 
  through 
  the 
  Hudson 
  river, 
  to 
  Lake 
  Erie." 
  

  

  In 
  1807 
  Jesse 
  Hawley 
  wrote 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  articles 
  on 
  the 
  subject, 
  

   claiming 
  that 
  the 
  idea 
  of 
  an 
  artificial 
  channel 
  first 
  originated 
  

   with 
  him, 
  and 
  in 
  1820 
  Elkanah 
  Watson 
  published 
  a 
  book 
  for 
  

   the 
  same 
  purpose. 
  In 
  1808 
  the 
  Legislature 
  directed 
  the 
  Surveyor- 
  

   General, 
  Simeon 
  DeWitt, 
  to 
  make 
  a 
  survey 
  of 
  an 
  artificial 
  channel 
  

   from 
  the 
  Great 
  Lakes 
  to 
  the 
  Hudson. 
  This 
  survey 
  was 
  made 
  by 
  

   James 
  Geddes, 
  who 
  reported 
  on 
  January 
  20, 
  1809. 
  In 
  1810 
  the 
  

   Legislature 
  appointed 
  commissioners 
  to 
  prosecute 
  further 
  exam- 
  

   inations. 
  This 
  commission 
  made 
  its 
  first 
  report 
  in 
  March, 
  1811. 
  

   After 
  discussing 
  the 
  route 
  as 
  proposed, 
  from 
  the 
  Hudson 
  river 
  to 
  

   Lake 
  Ontario, 
  it 
  recommended 
  the 
  inland 
  route 
  to 
  Lake 
  Erie 
  

   with 
  a 
  direct 
  descent 
  from 
  Lake 
  Erie 
  to 
  the 
  Hudson 
  river. 
  Follow- 
  

   ing 
  this 
  report 
  a 
  bill 
  was 
  passed 
  by 
  the 
  Legislature 
  reappointing 
  

   the 
  commissioners 
  of 
  the 
  previous 
  year, 
  with 
  the 
  addition 
  of 
  

   Robert 
  R. 
  Livingston 
  and 
  Robert 
  Fulton, 
  and 
  extending 
  the 
  

   powers 
  of 
  the 
  commissioners 
  and 
  adding 
  to 
  the 
  appropriation 
  for 
  

   its 
  work. 
  The 
  war 
  of 
  1812 
  came 
  on 
  and 
  the 
  canal 
  project 
  was 
  

   temporarily 
  dropped 
  until 
  1816, 
  when 
  De 
  Witt 
  Clinton 
  presented 
  

   a 
  memorial 
  to 
  the 
  legislature 
  from 
  the 
  City 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  urging 
  

   action 
  toward 
  the 
  construction 
  of 
  the 
  canal. 
  Finally 
  the 
  act 
  of 
  

   April 
  15, 
  1817, 
  was 
  passed 
  creating 
  a 
  permanent 
  Board 
  of 
  Canal 
  

   Commissioners, 
  1 
  which 
  entered 
  at 
  once 
  upon 
  its 
  duties, 
  and 
  pro- 
  

   file 
  permanent 
  Board 
  of 
  Canal 
  Commissioners 
  of 
  1817 
  included 
  the 
  fol- 
  

   lowing 
  men: 
  De 
  Witt 
  Clinton, 
  president; 
  Stephen 
  Van 
  Rensselaer, 
  Samuel 
  

   Young, 
  Joseph 
  Ellicott, 
  and 
  Myron 
  Holley, 
  their 
  appointment 
  having 
  been 
  

   first 
  authorized 
  by 
  the 
  act 
  of 
  April 
  17, 
  1816. 
  

  

  