Ohio. Board of Canal Commissioners

The Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners was created in 1822 through an act passed by the State of Ohio General Assembly. Early members included Thomas Worthington, Isaac Minor, and Alfred Kelley. Their duties were to examine, survey, and estimate the practicality of a canal connecting the Ohio River with Lake Erie, and to make an estimation of cost. During construction, each commissioner was responsible for certain sections of the canal, including hiring laborers, engineers, and building suppliers. In the 1830s, Commissioners continued to mange the completed waterway, employing toll collectors, maintenance laborers, and resident engineers. Commissioners also approved requests for water rights and were responsible for the canal's finances. The canal continued to operate until a flood in 1913 destroyed much of it.

From the description of Ohio and Erie Canal board of commissioners records, series II, 1825-1914. (Rhinelander District Library). WorldCat record id: 43837591

The Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners was created in 1822 through an act passed by the State of Ohio General Assembly. Early members included Thomas Worthington, Isaac Minor, and Alfred Kelley. Their duties were to examine, survey, and estimate the practicality of canals connecting the Ohio River with Lake Erie, and to make an estimation of cost. During construction of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the Miami and Erie Canal, each commissioner was responsible for certain sections of the canal, including hiring laborers, engineers, and building suppliers. In the 1830s, Commissioners continued to mange the completed waterway, employing toll collectors, maintenance laborers, and resident engineers. Commissioners also approved requests for water rights and were responsible for the canal's finances.

From the description of Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners records, series III, 1824-1826. (Rhinelander District Library). WorldCat record id: 43838983

The duties of the Department of Public Works originated in 1822 with the Board of Canal Commissioners. The Board of Canal Commissioners became the Board of Public Works in 1836 and was replaced by the Canal Commission in 1838. The Board of Public Works was recreated in 1839 and was replaced by the Superintendent of Public Works in 1912. In 1921, the powers and duties of the superintendent, the state highway commissioner, the chief highway engineer, and the state building commissioner were invested in the Department of Highways and Public Works. This department was separated in 1927 to create the Department of Highways and the Department of Public Works. This agency also absorbed the Superintendent of the National Road (1831-1836), the Canal Survey Commission (1888-1906), and the State Building Commission (1898-1921). In 1973, the Department of Public Works became the Division of Public Works of the Department of Administrative Services.

From the description of Cashbook of the Portsmouth toll collector, 1833. (Ohio Historical Society). WorldCat record id: 34968876

From the description of Cash ledger, 1822-1829. (Ohio Historical Society). WorldCat record id: 34888778

The Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners (1822-1914) was officially created on January 31, 1822, through an act passed by the State of Ohio General Assembly "Authorizing an Examination into the Practicability of Connecting Lake Erie with the Ohio River." Before that, an ad hoc commission had been appointed in 1820 to do a preliminary investigation of the canal, under the act "Respecting the Navigable Communication between Lake Erie and the Ohio River."

This commission's first members were some of Ohio's earliest statesmen and leaders, including Thomas Worthington, Isaac Minor, and Alfred Kelley, who represented the Cleveland-Akron transportation route of the canal. Their duties were to examine, survey, and estimate the practicality of a canal connecting the Ohio River with Lake Erie and to make a close estimation of the cost of such a canal. Commissioners also set strict specifications for the width, depth, and building materials for both the canal and towpath. Separate Fund Commissioners, appointed in 1825, searched for funding sources for the canal, following the state-approved recommendations of the Board of Canal Commissioners.

During the building of the canal, each commissioner was responsible for certain sections of the canal's construction, which included hiring laborers, engineers, and building suppliers. In the 1830s, the Board of Commissioners continued to manage the completed waterway, employing toll collectors, maintenance laborers, and resident engineers to make regular inspections. Commissioners also approved requests for water-rights and were responsible for the canal's finances. To their credit, the canal cost only $15,000 per mile and it eventually paid off every bond and loan that was taken out for its construction. In fact, the canal built from Akron to Cleveland cost only $442,130 to build, $50,000 less than what was originally estimated.

Throughout the 19th century, the Board of Commissioners continued to administer the canal for the state as it was regularly repaired and upgraded with cement locks. It continued to operate until the 1910s, long after the railroads surpassed it as the preferred transportation of goods in Ohio. In 1913, however, a major flood tore through canal banks and towpaths, and some cement locks had to be dynamited to decrease rivers' water flow. After the flood, the canal was never rebuilt, having already outlived its usefulness to the state.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for the Ohio and Erie Canal

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Alfred Kelly click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Daniel Kelly

From the guide to the Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners Records, Series II, 1825-1914, (Western Reserve Historical Society)

The Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners was created in 1822 through an act passed by the State of Ohio General Assembly. Early members included Thomas Worthington, Isaac Minor, and Alfred Kelley. Their duties were to examine, survey, and estimate the practicality of a canal connecting the Ohio River with Lake Erie, and to make an estimation of cost. During construction of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the Miami and Erie Canal, each commissioner was responsible for certain sections of the canal, including hiring laborers, engineers, and building suppliers. In the 1830s, Commissioners continued to manage the completed waterways; employing toll collectors, maintenance laborers, and resident engineers. Commissioners also approved requests for water rights and were responsible for the canal's finances.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for the Ohio and Erie Canal click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Alfred Kelley

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Daniel Kelley

From the guide to the Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners Records, Series III, 1824-1826, (Western Reserve Historical Society)

The Ohio and Erie Canal was constructed by the State of Ohio in 1825-1832 to connect Lake Erie at the city of Cleveland, Ohio, with the Ohio River in the city of Portsmouth, Ohio in order to provide an inexpensive mode of transportation and promote economic growth. The canal was 308 miles long and required 146 lift locks. The canal was built largely by Irish immigrant labor. After 1850, use of the canal decreased due to the growth of the railroad throughout Ohio, and when many sections were destroyed by floods in 1913 the state declined to rebuild the canal. A section of the canal in Cleveland has been maintained for industrial use, and several locks have become part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area.

View the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for the Ohio and Erie Canal

From the guide to the Ohio Board of Canal Commissioners Records, 1848-1883, (Western Reserve Historical Society)