Virtual Roadtrip: Erie Canal Musuem

Experience the Great American Adventure Story of the Erie Canal

Time for stop #6 on our Virtual Road Trip! The Erie Canal Museum is located in the Weighlock Building in downtown Syracuse, New York, and tells the story of the canal through hands-on exhibits, interactive displays, and original artifacts. Before you enter the museum, you are standing on the spot where the Erie and Oswego Canals intersected before being diverted away from downtown. The Weighlock Building was built in 1850 and served as a weigh station for canal cargo, which you will learn all about on your self-guided tour of the museum.

Today, the museum’s collection is housed on two main floors with permanent exhibits, special rotating exhibits, and a large collection of manuscripts, photographs, and artifacts belonging to the Canal Society of New York State. Interestingly, the museum opened in 1962 without any collections to display. The museum is a little “space-challenged” but well-organized, featuring thousands of objects, including costumes, furnishings, tools, canal boat equipment, models, paintings, maps, and many rare and unique artifacts.

The highlight of our visit was being able to board a full-size replica canal boat and envision a trip down the second-longest manmade canal in the world (behind the Grand Canal in China). In 2000, the canal was designated the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor to recognize the civil engineering accomplishment.

Tour Tip: Start your tour on the first floor, viewing the “The Erie Canal Made New York” permanent exhibit. After getting a general overview of the history and construction of the Canal, from earliest conception to the modern Barge Canal System, it’s time to visit the Weighlock Building exhibits and the Weigh Chamber to visualize the activities on the canal and the efforts and resources required to navigate 34 locks on 363 miles of the original canal from Buffalo to Albany.

Following the Connection

During most of the 1800’s, a vast majority of trade shipments were completed on the natural waterways across the United States. For our next stop, let’s jump from canal boat pilot to prolific author and young steamboat pilot Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain). Though Clemens might be most famous for writing about life on the Mississippi, he also wrote a famous poem about the Erie Canal and spent 17 years living with his family in Hartford, Connecticut.

Next Stop: Mark Twain House & Museum, Hartford, Connecticut

Detour: To continue your canal education, visit Sault Ste. Marie in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Here you can board a sightseeing boat and navigate alongside canal traffic through Soo Locks, the world’s largest locking system. Tours travels up and down the canal through both the giant U.S. Locks and historic Canadian Lock.

Plan Your Trip

Syracuse is located in Central New York between the Finger Lakes and Adirondack regions. There is something for everyone in Syracuse, from history, arts, and culture to outdoor recreation and a growing dining and shopping experience. Here are some recommendations from the travel desk at Check-it-Off Travel to consider while planning a trip to the museum.

Photo: Courtesy of the Erie Canal Museum