The Erie Canal was a canal running in New York that stretched 363 miles from Albany to Buffalo. The canal was also considered the engineering marvel of the 19th century. After 15 years of the canal opening, New York became the busiest port in America. The Erie Canal changed the United States by economy, New York (money), and religion.
The year of 1825 was when the economy began to really rise and the money started coming in. The Erie Canal costed $7 million dollars to build, but by the year of 1846 Canal tolls more than recouped the entire cost of construction. Jesse Hawley, a messenger, wrote about the benefits of the Erie Canal saying, “the United States, would shortly after, be left without a competition in trade” (Doc