2025 marks the 200th anniversary of the completion of the Erie Canal in 1825 and New York State has a huge party planned. On this episode of the podcast, we speak with state officials and local partners to discuss this momentous birthday celebration and the importance of the Canal System today and into the future.
Interviewees: William J. Hochul Jr., First Gentleman of the State of New York and co-chair of the New York State Erie Canal Bicentennial Commission, Brian U. Stratton, Director of the New York State Canal Corporation and co-chair of the New York State Erie Canal Bicentennial Commission, and Derrick Pratt, Director of Education and Public Programs at the Erie Canal Museum.
For a deeper dive into the history of the Erie Canal, check out episode 3 of A New York Minute in History called “Erie Canal: Compressing Time and Distance.”
Marker of Focus: Old Erie Canal, Onondaga County.
Image Courtesy of the William G. Pomeroy Foundation
Transporting Grains on the Erie Canal, late 19th century, courtesy of the New York State Museum
Courtesy of the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor
The Seneca Chief, Image Courtesy of the Buffalo Maritime Center
Upcoming Bicentennial Events:
New York State Canal Corporation Bicentennial Website
Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Bicentennial Website
2025 World Canals Conference, Buffalo, NY September 21-25
Buffalo Maritime Center: The Bicentennial Voyage of the Seneca Chief
Albany Symphony Orchestra: 2025 American Music Festival
Water Music NY: More Voices
Further Reading/Viewing:
Carol Sheriff, The Artificial River: The Erie Canal and the Paradox of Progress, 1997.
Brad Utter, Ashley Hopkins-Benton and Karen Quinn, Enterprising Waters: The History and Art of New York’s Erie Canal, 2020.
Laurence M. Hauptman,
