History of turnpikes and canals in the United States
The history of turnpikes and canals in the United States began with work attempted and accomplished in the original thirteen colonies, predicated on European technology. After gaining independence, the
Background
After its victory in the
Toll roads
Early
Canals
Canal companies had also been chartered in the states, and like turnpikes these early canals were constructed, owned, and operated by private joint-stock companies. The first to complete this work was the Proprietors of the Locks and Canals on Connecticut River, which was chartered on February 23, 1792 with the signature of Governor John Hancock.[5] By 1795 the Proprietors had completed the South Hadley Canal, the first navigable canal to be completed in the United States.[6] Continuing their work, the Proprietors turned their attention to the Turners Falls Canal to the north, which opened in 1798.[7][8] Many other canal ventures existed at this time but of all the canals projected for construction, only four additional had been completed by the outbreak of the War of 1812: the Dismal Swamp Canal in Virginia, the Santee Canal in South Carolina, the Bellows Falls Canal in Bellows Falls, Vermont and the Middlesex Canal in Massachusetts. After the war, New York authorized construction of the
This bold bid for the western trade to their north alarmed the competing merchants of Philadelphia, since the completion of the National Road also threatened to divert much of their traffic south to Baltimore. In 1825, the legislature of Pennsylvania grappled with the problem by projecting a series of canals to connect Philadelphia with Pittsburgh in the west and with Lake Erie and the upper Susquehanna to the north.
Political differences
The United States government had funded and constructed improvements along its coastline beginning with the founding of the United States Army Corps of Engineers during the revolution, and many politicians wanted them to contribute to construction of works "of a civil nature" as well. Before 1800, the Corps supervised the construction of coastal fortifications, but they also constructed lighthouses, helped develop jetties and piers for harbors, and carefully mapped the changing navigation channels. Although temporarily downsized following the war, the Corps was reestablished in 1802 and began constructing and repairing fortifications in Norfolk and New Orleans. The fortification appropriations proliferated during the five years of diplomatic tension that preceded the War of 1812; these substantially expanded the system of fortifications protecting New York Harbor and convinced the commanders of the British navy to avoid attacking that strategic location. Following the war, the United States soon developed an expanded system of more modern fortifications to provide the first line of land defense against the threat of attack from European powers.[12] Outside of defense issues, however, federal power over domestic "internal improvements" away from the coasts and among the states did not gain political consensus. Federal assistance for internal improvements evolved slowly and haphazardly — the product of contentious congressional factions and an executive branch generally concerned with avoiding unconstitutional federal intrusions into state affairs.[13]
In his first message to Congress,
The magnitude of the transportation problem was such that neither individual states nor private corporations seemed able to meet the demands of expanding internal trade. As early as 1807,
In 1816, with the uneven experiences of the war quite evident, the national aspects of the problem could not be ignored. Even non-federalist President James Madison invited the attention of Congress to the need of establishing "a comprehensive system of roads and canals".[citation needed] Soon after Congress met, it took under consideration a bill drafted by John C. Calhoun proposing an appropriation of $1,500,000 for internal improvements. Because this appropriation was to be met by the moneys paid by the National Bank to the government, the bill was commonly referred to as the "Bonus Bill". But on the day before he left office, Madison vetoed the bill because he felt it was unconstitutional. Having less regard for consistency, the House of Representatives recorded its conviction, by close votes, that Congress could appropriate money to construct roads and canals but did not have the power to construct them. The only direct aid of the national government for internal improvements remained various appropriations, amounting to about $1,500,000 for the Cumberland Road.[15]
As the country recovered from financial depression following the Panic of 1819, the question of internal improvements again forged to the front. In 1822, a bill to authorize the collection of tolls on the Cumberland Road was vetoed by President James Monroe. In an elaborate essay, he set forth his views on the constitutional aspects of a policy of internal improvements. Congress might appropriate money, Monroe admitted, but it might not undertake the actual construction of national works nor assume jurisdiction over them. For the moment the drift toward a larger participation of the national government in internal improvements was stayed. The situation would change dramatically two years later, however, with Supreme Court rulings that would resolve the related constitutional questions with some finality.
Initial resolution
In March 1824 the
In the Presidential campaign of 1824, Speaker of the House Henry Clay, the foremost proponent of the 'American System', pleaded for a larger conception of the functions of the national government. He called attention to provisions made for coastal surveys and lighthouses on the Atlantic seaboard and deplored the neglect of the interior of the country. Senator and war-hero Andrew Jackson voted for the General Survey Act, as did Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, who left no doubt that he did not support the narrow views of his New England region on this issue. William H. Crawford felt the constitutional scruples being voiced in the South, and followed the old expedient of advocating for a constitutional amendment to sanction national internal improvements.[16]
Shortly thereafter, Congress passed two important laws that would set a new course concerning federal involvement in internal improvements. In April Congress passed the
In 1826 Congress expanded the workload of the Corps of Engineers and the pace of improvements. The new legislation authorized the president to have river surveys made to clean out and deepen selected waterways and to make various other river and harbor improvements. It was also the first legislation of this type to combine authorizations for both surveys and projects, thereby establishing the pattern for future work.[13]
Some political differences did remain. In March 1826 the Virginia general assembly declared that all the principles of their earlier resolutions applied "with full force against the powers assumed by Congress" in passing acts to further internal improvements and to protect manufacturers. That the John Quincy Adams administration would meet with opposition in Congress was a foregone conclusion.[18]
Further reading
- John Lauritz Larson, Internal Improvement: National Public Works and the Promise of Popular Government in the Early United States (2001). University of North Carolina Press, ISBN 978-0-8078-4911-8.
- Archer B. Hulbert, The Paths of Inland Commerce, A Chronicle of Trail, Road, and Waterway, Volume 21, Chronicles of America Series. Editor: Allen Johnson, (1921)
See also
References
- ISBN 0-19-504605-6.
- ^ s:Northwest Ordinance. Art. 4:"The navigable waters leading into the Mississippi and St. Lawrence, and the carrying places between the same, shall be common highways and forever free, as well to the inhabitants of the said territory as to the citizens of the United States, and those of any other States that may be admitted into the confederacy, without any tax, impost, or duty therefor."
- ^ Introductory note to Section 17, [portions of] the Gallatin Report (1808)
- ^ Cowan 1997, pp. 98
- ^ Massachusetts General Court (1807). "An Act in Addition to the Act incorporating sundry persons by the Name of The Proprietors of the Locks and Canals on Connecticut-River, and the other Acts paffed respecting the same". J. T. Buckingham for Thomas & Andrews And Manning & Loring.
- OCLC 1815771.
- "Drafting of Lakes Treaty Proceeding; Signing of U. S.-Canada Accord Not Expected Till Late in Week". The Washington Star. July 17, 1932. p. 2 – via Associated Press (AP).
The first locked canal in North America was built in 1783 to avoid the rapids of the St. Lawrence between Lake St. Francis and Montreal. The first canal in the United States was built 10 years later, around the falls of the Connecticut River at South Hadley Falls, Mass...
- "Drafting of Lakes Treaty Proceeding; Signing of U. S.-Canada Accord Not Expected Till Late in Week". The Washington Star. July 17, 1932. p. 2 – via Associated Press (AP).
- ^ "South Hadley Canal". University of Massachusetts. Archived from the original on 2014-05-21. Retrieved 2013-12-17.
- ^ "Turners Falls Dam". Report of Connecticut Valley Waterway Board on an Investigation of the Connecticut River. Boston: Wright & Potter Printing Co., State Printers. March 1913. p. 36.
- ^ Cowan 1997, pp. 102
- ^ Johnson, Allen (1915), Union and Democracy, Cambridge, Massachusetts: Houghton Mifflin Company, pp. 255–256
- ^ a b Cowan 1997, pp. 104
- ^ The Beginnings to 1815 Archived 2011-09-06 at the Wayback Machine, Corps of Engineers
- ^ a b c d Improving Transportation Archived 2012-01-06 at the Wayback Machine, United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)
- ^ Johnson 1915, pp. 256
- ^ Johnson 1915, pp. 257–258
- ^ Johnson 1915, pp. 309–310
- ^ a b Timeline: Development of US Inland Waterways System Archived 2011-10-03 at the Wayback Machine, Coosa-Alabama River Improvement Association, Inc.
- ^ Johnson 1915, pp. 319–320