OHIO STATEWIDE FILES OH-FOOTSTEPS Mailing List Issue 162 *********************************************************************** USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/ *********************************************************************** OH-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest Volume 01 : Issue 162 Today's Topics: #1 Fw: Know Your Ohio -- Ohio's Canal ["MaggieOhio" To: OH-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <07ab01c139c5$707d87a0$0300a8c0@local.net> Subject: Fw: Know Your Ohio -- Ohio's Canals Part 3. Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ----- Original Message ----- From: "Darlene & Kathi kelley" To: Sent: Monday, August 27, 2001 6:32 PM Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Darlene E. Kelley August 27, 2001. *********************************************** Historical Collections of Ohio Know Your Ohio by Darlene E. Kelley Ohio's Canals -- Part 3. *********************************************** Ohio's Canals -- Part 3. The Opening of Ohio to Trade.-- and the Economic impact. With the opening of Ohio's Canals, thousands of miles of cheap transportation for commerce and new settlers, The State rapidly grew both agriculturally and industrially. Even when the railroads supplanted the canals as the primary source of transprtation in the 1850's the canals maintained a place in Ohio's economy for another 50 years. The development of the waterways enabled Ohioans along Lake Erie to trade with Canada, the Atlantic Coast and Pittsburg. Those in the South could trade along the Ohio and Mississippi to New Orleans. But the interior of Ohio was serviced by country roads that were little more than trails. Sending produce across the Appalachian Mountains was as expensive as the produce itself and it often spoiled before reaching its market. Hogs and cattle were driven overland to markets in New York and Baltimore. Shipment via river to New Orleans was often hazard and unprofitable. An improved form of transportation would benifit Ohioans, enabling them to compete in the larger eastern markets. Two years after the groundbreaking, the first boat called " The State of Ohio " carried Governor Trimble and others the 38 miles from Portage Summit near Akron to Cleveland. In November, three boats made the trip from Cincinnati to Middletown. In 1829, the first boat arrived in Dayton from Cincinnati and by 1834, ten locks from Cincinnati to the Ohio River opened the complete system from Dayton to the River. Navigation of the entire Ohio and Erie system was possible in 1832, except for the Portsmouth locks, which were finished in 1834. The Miami extension was begun in 1833, but delayed until 1837, because of border disputes with Michigan. The Wabash and Erie was completed in 1842 and the Lake Erie-Ohio riverway, later renamed the Miami and Erie Canal was opened in 1845 with the passage of the Boat " Banner, " from Cincinnati to Toledo. Success of the State funded waterways, stimulated private enterprise to build additional canals such as; The Sandy and Beaver, Lancaster ( later Hocking Valley ) Lateral, Cincinnati and Whitewater, Pennsylvania and Ohio, Warren County, Walhonding, Muskingham River Improvement, and Milan. With the completion of New Yorks Erie Canal in 1825 and as the canals opened in Ohio, Ohio became less isolated from the rest of the country. Prices for agricultural produce, wages, an canal construction costs rose. For 25 years the canals were the principal means of transportation of both freight and passengers within Ohio. In 1842, passenger travel on the canals rose exceedinly, with the largest passenger traffic on the Ohio and Erie. It never became an important route of travel across the country because of its great length and number of locks. Cost of moving a ton of freight from the east coast overland before the canals was $ 125.00, after, it dropped to $ 25.00 via canal. Products from Ohio rose in price as they found new markets. More grain came to Cleveland from the interior of the State than from the Cuyahoga Valley or the Lake Erie shore. Akron milled much of its wheat into flour and sent 376,000 bushels to Clevelad in 1846 and 1847. In 1847, Massillon sent 1.7 million bushels of flour and wheat along the canal. The Miami and Erie Canal was less heavily used than the Ohio and Erie, but it trade had a major impact on the development of the region. The emphasis was on different trade items, transporting more flour, pork and whiskey, then wheat. Between 1833 and 1850, Cincinnati regularly received 18,000 and 35,000 bushels of pork per year. After the Miami Extension was added, Cincinnati was able to send sugar and molasses, from the southern markets, north to Toledo and into Indiana. Cities like Akron grew from shanty towns into prosperous communities. The canal ran what is now Main street. Other communities like Cleveland, Youngstown, Portsmouth and Dayton developed into important trade centers. The State of Ohio's population grew from 581,295 in 1820 to 1,980,329 in 1850, due to the immigration of people from the east because of the cheapness of canal transportation. Property values increased in all 33 counties where canals were built, which meant more tax revenue. Due in part of the canals, the population of Ohio increased until it was the third most populous state in the Union. Industry like iron ore and coal mining were stimulated, mills, machine shops, foundries, distilleries, woolen and cotton factories located along the canals to utilize the waterpower and the convenient transportation. For the first time, during the construction period, workers could accumulate cash and use that to purchase goods, rather than by barter. As agricultural and industrial development increased, people had more money to buy manufactured goods and to invest. Many workers acquired managerial skills from working for the State which they later used to run Banks, Railraods and other business. The Boats and Canal Operations -- There were several different type of boats to be found on the Canals. There were Cargo Boats, State Maintenance Boats, Floating Residences, Grocery Store, Packet or Passenger Boats carrying 40 to 60 passegers. Boats cost $2,000 to $4,000 each including six horses or oxen, were low, long, and narrow. Usually 13 to 14 feet wide, 78 to 89 feet long to slide through standard 15 foot by 90 foot locks. Boat building increased to fit the needs of the canals. Mostly were built by skilled builders who were in knowledge of canal demensions, and the always change of weather conditions. Trips on the canal were often described as leisurely. Days were spent on deck, ducking when the " low bridge " call, went up. In the early days, there was no schedule for the packet or passenger boats, as the passengers went ashore to cook their meals. Boats would stop twice a day, usually around 9am and 2pm for this purpose and the feeding of the animals. Often the spare animals were carried on the boat along with the passengers. Malaria ( often called " canal chills" or "canal fever" ) were common. Mosquitoes, gnats, and flies were not uncommon. Usually followed along with birds and insect eating animals. The crew was usually a six man crew. Later a cook was sometimes added. This cook also was allowed to make extra money, not only cooking for the crew. but sometimes cooking for some of the passengers, depending the contents of food supplied on the packet boat, or acquired along the route. Two crews moved the canal boats. The Lock Keeper and his crew would help the boat through the lock, day or night, and lived in a home by the canal. The boat captain and his crew would make their home in the 14 foot by 25 foot cabin on the boat. The " hoggie " controlled the team of animals that were pulling the boat. The " tripper " would push the boat forward and keep it away from the banks with a long pole. The " tiller " would steer with the rudder in the stern. Women and children did the extra cookng and cleaning. At night the Boat crew would call out " Hey! Hey! Lock". The Lock Keeper would keep large lanterns out at night which projected the light hundreds of feet along the darkened canal ditch. The Captain would blow his bugle and another crewman would wave a small lantern, often with a red light to establish communication with the Lock Keeper Crew. The Lock Keeper Crew, now alerted would rush out, open the first set of gates. After determining that the water level was even, they unhitched the tow rope. As the boat entered the canal chamber the Captain would take over the steering, while the crew jumped onto the lock to join the other crew in " locking through." Some locks would get colorful nicknames because of the events that happened, like " Johnny Cake" ( Lock 27 ) and "PanCake" ( Lock 26 ) on the Ohio & Erie canal. These two locks received these names because of the Lock Keeper's wife would feed the stranded passengers or canal boat crews because the locks often become clogged with silt and they would have to wait until they were freed from the mud. An 80 hour trip from Cleveland to Portsmouth cost $ 1.70 in 1832. 1,000 people each week traveled along the Miami Canal between Cincinnati and Dayton. The most inconvenient part of the trip, were the nights spent in 3 root wide berths, which projected in tiers from the cabin walls. Washroom facilities were shared by all on board. Navagation rules required that packet boats ( Passenger boats ) had precedence over cargo. If both boats were alike the boat traveling downstream would be required to drop its tow rope to the bottom, allowing the upstream boat to have the right-of-way. Speed was limited to 4 miles an hour to reduce erosion of the banks. Steam boats were not popular on the canals because of the damage their churning wake would make to the banks. Although rules were made for conduct at the locks if two or more boats arrived at the same time, often, right-of-way went to the crew that fought out the others. Many times crews were hired not so much for their skills but for their fighting skills. James A. Garfield, future President of the United States, served several months on his cousins canal boat in 1848 on the Ohio and Erie and Pensylvania and Ohio Canals. " I've got two mules, both who are my pal, Working their way, down the ohio's canal. Both are good workers, I'll feed them well As they work the way from the Erie Canal. We've hauled some tonage in our day. Filled with produce and people, along the way. We know every inch of the of the canal The locks, the low bridge, the friendly banks. And this we do, without much thanks. The wages are slim, I do this for fun-- Do you believe me , everyone? I do this today, and I must say-- my two mules, get most of my pay, But these two mules who are may pal Have worked their way down Ohio Canal." *********************************************** to be continued in Part 4. ______________________________ ------=_NextPart_000_04E4_01C152C1.9120DBA0 Content-Type: message/rfc822; name="Fw_ Know Your Ohio -- Ohio's Canals -- Part 5..eml" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="Fw_ Know Your Ohio -- Ohio's Canals -- Part 5..eml" X-Message: #2 Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2001 02:53:10 -0400 From: "MaggieOhio" To: OH-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <07ad01c139c5$71362940$0300a8c0@local.net> Subject: Fw: Know Your Ohio -- Ohio's Canals -- Part 5. Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ----- Original Message ----- From: "Darlene & Kathi kelley" Contributed for Use in USGenWeb Archives by Darlene E. Kelley August 29, 2001. *********************************************** Historical Collections of Ohio Know Your Ohio by Darlene E. Kelley Ohio's Canals -- Part 5. *********************************************** Ohio's Canals -- Part 5. From the Columbus Gazette -- July 4th 1825. Licking Summit. " The ceremonies commenced as been agreed upon. Governor Clinton received the spade, thrust it into the rich soil of Ohio, and raised the first spadeful of earth, admidst the most enthusiastic shouts of the thousands present. The earth was placed in what they called a canal wheel-barrow. Then the spade was passed to Governor Morrow, the Governor of Ohio, a statesman and farmer. He sunk the spade into the earth, its full depth, and raised the second spadeful. Then commenced a hustle for whom would raise the next. Captain Ned King, having the command of an Infantry Company from Chillicothe, raised the third, then some of the guests in Governor Clinton's company, and finally, the Canal wheel-barrow being full, Captain King took hold of the handles and wheeled it out to a bank. For me at this time to attempt to describe the scene is impossible ---- the most enthusiastic excitement by all the thousands, and shouts went to the All-giver. The feeling was so great that tears fell from manly eyes, the strong expression of the heart. Mr. Thomas Ewing, of Lancaster was orator of the day. The stand for speaking was in the woods. The crowd was so great that one company of calvary were formed in a hollow square around the back and sides of the stand for speaking. The flies, after three days' of rain, were so troublesome that the horses kept up a constant tramping, which induced the following remark from my friend Caleb Atwater, that evening from Lancaster: " Well" says he, " I suppose it was right to have the horses in front of the speaker's stand, for they cannot read and we can. " From a Cleveland Newspaper -- Cleveland-- June 30, 1825. " It was a heavenly day, not a cloud in the sky, the lake calm as the river, its glistening bosom reflectin the fiece rays of an almost tropical sun; the boat soon passed Water Street, dressed with all her flags and came to anchor about a mile opposite the mouth of the river and fired her usual signal gun. Her commander, Captain Fisk, ordered the steps to be let down and her yawl boat placed along side them; then taking Governor Clinton by the hand, seated him inthe stern of the boat, and was followed by his aids, Colonel Jones, Colonel Read, and Colonel Solomon Van Rensselaer, who had transversed the state when a wilderness, as an officer under General Wayne. Messrs Rathbone and Lord who had loaned the money with which to commence the canal, and Judge Conkling, United States District Judge, of New York. They came up the river, the stars and stripes waving over them, and landed at the foot of Superior Street, where the recepion committee with carriages and a large concourse of citizens awaited them and took them to the Mansion House, where Governor Clinton was addressed by Judge Samuel Cowles, who had been selected by the committee to make the reception address. Governor Clinton made an eloquent reply. In a part of his remarks he made the statement, " that when our canals were are made, even if they cost five million dollars, they would be worth three times that sum; that the increased price of our productions in twenty years would be worth five million dollars; that the money saved on the transprtation of goods, to our people, during the same period would be five million dollars, and that the canals would finally by their tolls, refund the entire cost, principal and interest."" *********************************************** Glossary of Canal Terms -- Abutment -- The point where a canal structure is built into an existing hillside or stream bank to begin either an aquaduct or a culvert. Parts of an abutment are the breast and the wing walls. Aquaduct -- A structure designed to facilitate the travel over an existing river, stream or valley. An aquaduct was mostly built of wood or stone and carried the canal with a towpath over these obstructions. Balance Beam -- A wooden timber attached to the lock gates. One one each side. These were used by the lock keeper to open and close the gates. Basin -- An area where the canal widens allowing for passing of boats and economic development such as mills,canal warehouses. Often the site of " Canal Towns." Berm -- The opposite bank of the towpath. Boaters -- A term used by canallers for themselves. Breakwater -- Designed to protect the canal from destructive forces such as floods from lakes and rivers. Breast -- The notched area of an abutment onto which the aquaduct or culvert flume construction was fitted. It helped to support the weight of the flume. Bulkhead -- The head of a breakwater, helping to protect an area from water damage. Buttress -- An area of the lock wall thickened ad strengthened where the lock gates were installed and operated. Chain Measure -- A linar meaurement used in surverying. A chain was equal to 66 feet. A tunnel was measured in chains because instead of being towed by the mule team the boat was pulled along on a chain. Chamber -- The portion of the lock between the gates. Standard measurements for a chamber were 15 feet wide and 90 feet long. Depending on the depth of the chamber, it would hold 100,000 to 120,000 gallons of water. Clinton's Ditch -- A nickname for the Ohio & Erie Canal. Culvert -- A smaller structure than the aquaduct. It served a simular purpose, often constructed like a bridge of stone with arches. Deep Cut -- Often used in areas where a canal needed to traverse a hill or ridge. A large area was blasted with gunpowder. It was cheaper than building a lock system through the area. Debris from this construction was often used elsewhere in the canal system. Dressed Stone -- Limestone or Sandstone, carefully processed in a quarry, often very close to the canal but usually within a 20 mile radius. These stones were 1 to 1 1/2 feet thick, 2 or 3 feet deep, 3 to 8 feet long and weighed 1 to 1 1/2 tons. Feeder -- A structure or stream that fed water either from lakes or rivers into the canal to maintain the required o desired water level. A feeder lock often helped control the entry of water into the canal and prevented canal water frombackng up or leaking out of the canal. Flooring-- The top layer of wood in the bottom of the lock. Flume -- The canal channel maintained and supported by aqueduct or culvert. Intermediate Pier -- A structure built around the aqueduct pillars to protect them from flooding or ice jams. Lay To -- A stop when the canal boat became stuck in the canal. If a canal boat was stuck in the mud it was termed " mudlarked." Lock -- The main structure of a canal. It enabled the water level of the canal to be adjusted to the surrounding land elevation. Often called " LIft Locks, " they could be built to raise the boats varying depths. Oe of the highest was a lift of 17 feet. Standard Ohio canal lengths were 120 feet, but also varied. If land elevation changed an excessive amount within a short distance a series of locks would be built in a row to navigate the change in elevation. Lock Gates -- Gates at each end of a lock that with the help of wickets and wrenches, enabled water to move the boats through the canal. Through the lock a controlled current was created as part of the " locking through" process. The gates formed a "V" pointing upstream. Usually each gate folded into a recess built into the lock walls, when open. Lock Keeper -- Often called the Lock Master or Lock Tender, each was a term for the person opening and closing the lock gates. Lock Wall Hangers -- Metal objects approximately three feet long and a half inch thick. These were incorporated into some lock chamber walls to help secure the lock planking and forming a watertight chamber. The planks were held in place with metal wedges driven through holes at one end of each hanger. Lock Wrench -- A curved metal device attached to a rod running he height of the lock gate. It was used to control the sluice gate or wicket. Long Level -- A length of canal free of locks, oftrn at the summit of a canal. Millrace -- A channel where some canal water overflow or river rapids were diverted to run a mill waterwheel. Milltail -- The water left over after the mill wheel had been turned, usually returned to the canal or river. Mitre sill -- The wooden threshold upon which each set of lock gates would fit in the " V " formation. Penstock -- A millrace. Pivot -- A metal device like a ballbearing at the base of each lock gate on which the lock gates could turn more easily. Planking -- The middle layer of wood making up the lock floor. Prism -- The configuration of the canal ditch. Dimensions varied bu averaged between 5 feet deep, 40 to 60 feet wide at the water line, and 26 to 28 feet at the bottom of the ditch. Quarry -- A site where limestone or sandstone was dug to be used on the canal. Often very close along the canal route. Reservoirs -- Man made lakes to store water at the summit levels of canals. Rip-Rapping -- Stones used of varying size placed in th canal prisms to prevent erosion of the canal banks. Erosion would create sandbars around the lock gates and in the chambers, jamming the gates or stranding a boat on the obstruction. Section -- A length of canal transformed from virgin forest or virgin swamp into a canal prism. It was possible to build a one-mile prism in 4 1/2 days. Sidecut -- A lateral canal which connected the main part of the channel to a nearby stream or canal. Slackwater -- Where a portion of a stream was dammed so that it could act as a canal. Slackwater was used where a canal had to cross a river, stream or lake. If navigation across a slackwater area would be difficult, since canal boats had no form of propulsion an aqueduct over the obstruction was often built. In other areas of slackwater all would be needed was a towpath built across the top o the dam. Sluice Gate -- A mechanism in the bottom of the canal chamber that adjusted the water level before the gates could be opened. Also called a Wicket. It was opened by turning the metal lock-wrench at the top of the lock. This enabled water to enter through the lock gates. When the water was level on both sides of the gates the sluice gate was closed and the lock gates opened. Snubbing -- Used to control the boats in the " locking-through " process. Taking many forms snubbing could be large wooden posts along the lock walls or metal posts and rings to whch the boat was tied. Tailrace-- see Milltail. Timbers -- White oak beams making up the lowest layer of the lock bottem. Toll Collector -- The person who collected the fees for traveling the canal. It cost $ 17.00 for anyone over 12 years of age to travel the full length of the Ohio & Erie Canal. It was 5c for each " Locking-through " process. Cargo was subject to toll. Toll House -- This was the place where tolls were paid, spaced along a canal. Towline -- A rope used to link the draft animals to the canal boat. Animals either pulled individually, in tandem ( one behind the other ), or as a team ( side by side ). In a lock this rope was used to tie the boat to the snubbing posts. A towline was kept as wet as possible to allow it to be dropped quickly to the bottem of the canal so that other boats could cross over them when they passed on the canal. Towpath -- A ten footwide walkway for both canal workers and animals, built on one side of the canal bank. Tunnel-- A tunnel often built through a hillside to maintain the long level at a canal summit and reduce the need for lockage. There were three in Ohio. Two in the Sandy & Beaver Canal and one in the Cincinnati & Whtewater. Waste Weir -- This helped remove excess water from the canal ditch. Also called an overflow. Weigh Lock -- A weigh lock is thought to be a forerunner of the truck weigh-stations that we have today. The lock was designed with a cradle attached to scales to check the weight of the cargo and obtain correct toll fees. Weigh Master -- The operator of a weigh lock. He knew the empty weight of the boats. He would subtract these from the full weights of the boats to get an accrurate cargo weight. Wicket -- See Sluice Gate. Wing Walls-- Usually a " V " shaped formation divided by an abutment breast. The wing wall protested the abutment by deflecting water away. Upstream wing walls were always larger than the downstream wing walls. Locks also had wing walls. *********************************************** to be continued in Part 6 ______________________________ ------=_NextPart_000_04E4_01C152C1.9120DBA0 Content-Type: message/rfc822; name="Obit_ Jacob Coughenour, 1926.eml" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="Obit_ Jacob Coughenour, 1926.eml" X-Message: #3 Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2001 10:27:10 +0000 From: "Ralph W. Cokonougher" To: OH-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: Subject: Obit: Jacob Coughenour, 1926 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed I am forwarding the following obituary as I received it, as there are probably several people in Ohio who may find it of use in future research. RWC From: Nadine Shipman Sinkwitz To: "Ralph W. Cokonougher" Subject: Fwd: [Pafayett-L] Obit JACOB COUGHENOUR, 83 years old, Dec 3, 1926 Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2001 07:00:17 -0700 Ralph, Thought you may be interested in this obit: > >Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2001 09:57:09 -0400 >From: Patricia Homlish >To: "PAFAYETT-L@rootsweb.com" >Subject: [Pafayett-L] Obit JACOB COUGHENOUR, 83 years old, Dec 3, 1926 >No connection, just sharing. > >"JACOB COUGHENOUR, 83 years old, for many years a resident of Layton, >died yesterday morning in the home of his daughter, Mrs. Anna Bates in >the White Front apartments, North Pittsburg street. The deceased had >been making his home with his daughter since last September and on >Monday suffered a stroke of paralysis. Mr. Coughenour was a resident of >Layton for the past 33 years and since the death of his wife four years >ago had been making his home with his daughters in Layton and in >Connellsville. He was born in Altoona April 3 or 8 (hard to read) >crease in paper, 1844. In 1868, he married Miss Anna Swope and to that >union were born two sons and a daughter, Mrs. Anna Bates of >Connellsville, Alex Coughenour and William Coughenour of Cumberland, the >latter two deceased. After the death of his first wife, he married Miss >Sarah Cornelius and to that union were born two daughters, Mrs. Stella >Richter and Mrs. Allie Edwards, both of Layton. He is survived also by >two sisters and a brother in Altoona. He was a life long and consistent >member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and served as superintendent of >the church in Layton for fifteen years. He was well known in his >community and highly respected b all. Funeral services will be held in >the home of Mrs. Bates on Saturday afternoon at 12:30 with services in >the Methodist Episcopal Church in Perryopolis at 2' o'clock. Internment >will be made in Mount Washington cemetery of the same place.(Dec 3, >1926) Connellsville Courier." > >Patricia _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp -------------------------------- End of OH-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest V01 Issue #162 *******************************************