The Erie Canal transformed the village of Buffalo into into a fast-growing city and a transportation hub. It also opened up access to the Midwest via the Great Lakes. From Ohio to Minnesota, goods traveled east and people west. Many settled in Buffalo, but all paid tolls to use the Canal, making New York’s original investment pay off in a few years. Read this post to find out how.
As the railroads grew, they became the main mode of transport before the days of streetcars and personal automobiles. Buffalonians rode the train to work and could connect to anywhere in the nation. Rails also brought the nation to Buffalo for the 1901 Pan American Exhibition. Find out how in this post.
There’s no doubt that the Erie Canal put Buffalo on the map and started the city’s rapid growth in the first half of the 18th century. Once the steam engine became readily available, the canal just couldn’t compete. This post describes how the speed and flexibility of the railroads eventually overtook the canal in the second half of the nineteenth century and beyond.