Erie Canal Quiz

Mrs. Mertens

Name(s)______

  1. Jesse Hawley first published his idea of the Erie Canal while in ______.
  2. Harvard College
  3. England
  4. military battle
  5. prison
  1. Which of the following was not a reason for the construction of the Erie Canal?
  2. the need to transport slaves
  3. trade
  4. travel
  5. the Civil War
  1. When did construction begin on the Erie Canal?
  2. 1699
  3. 1817
  4. 1825
  5. 1901
  1. What was the name given to people who worked on the Erie Canal?
  2. Tributaries
  3. Canal Folks
  4. Erie Diggers
  5. Canawlers
  1. Most of the men who designed the construction of the Erie Canal were experienced engineers.
  2. True
  3. False
  1. The Erie Canal was constructed exclusively by immigrants, most of whom were Irish.
  2. True
  3. False
  1. Approximately how much did it cost to construct the Erie Canal?
  2. $1 million
  3. $750,000
  4. $7 million
  5. $11 million
  1. How deep was the original canal?
  2. 4 feet
  3. 10 feet
  4. 100 feet
  5. 1 mile
  1. The original Erie Canal was ______miles long.
  2. 363
  3. 276
  4. 178
  5. 467
  1. Which two bodies of water does the Erie Canal connect?
  2. The Atlantic Ocean with the Great Lakes
  3. The Pacific Ocean with Lake Erie
  4. The Hudson River with the Mohawk River
  5. The Susquehanna River with Lake Michigan
  1. A freight barge named ______traveled the Erie Canal from Buffalo, New York, at the eastern end of Lake Erie, to Albany, New York, on the upper Hudson River; from there it continued its journey down the Hudson River to New York City.
  2. Chesapeake
  3. Leopard
  4. Seneca Chief
  5. Old Ironsides
  1. New York’s governor, De Witt Clinton, traveled the Erie Canal, pouring water from the start of his trip to the end point. This event is referred to as______.
  2. The Salutation to the Canal
  3. Erie’s Final Affair
  4. The Conclusion of the Canal
  5. The Wedding of the Waters
  6. Due to the increased ability to travel, the population of New York decreased as a result of the Erie Canal.
  7. True
  8. False
  1. How were debts resulting from the construction of the canal repaid?
  2. Toll collection
  3. Government grants
  4. Support from Britain
  5. Private investors
  1. To overcome the rise in land between the beginning and the end of the Erie Canal, ______were built.
  2. Aqueducts
  3. Channels
  4. Barges
  5. Locks
  1. The Erie Canal is now part of the______.
  2. New York State Canal System
  3. Immigration Waterway System
  4. New England Barge System
  5. New York Waterway Federation
  1. Who funded most of the construction of the Erie Canal?
  2. The federal government
  3. Private donations from wealthy American families
  4. A Swiss Bank
  5. The State of New York
  1. Which of the following was invented to improve the construction of the Erie Canal?
  2. barges
  3. concrete
  4. stump pullers
  5. aqueducts
  1. Many of the immigrants who worked on the canal were hired because they knew how to use heavy machinery to help dig the canal.
  2. True
  3. False
  1. A (n) ______is the area along the canal where horses or mules pulled the boats.
  2. Aqueduct
  3. Towpath
  4. Hoggee
  5. Muckland
  1. Which of the following was a nickname for the Erie Canal project?
  2. Jackson’s Channel
  3. The Canal Disaster
  4. Clinton’s Ditch
  5. The Erie Folly
  1. Americans depended on canals for moving heavy goods because shipping goods on canals was much more efficient than using roads. It took 4 horses to haul a 1.5 ton load on a good road; on the other hand it took______.
  2. 2 horses to pull a canal boat loaded with 1.5 tons.
  3. 2 horses to pull a canal boat loaded with 25tons.
  4. 4 horses to pull a canal boat loaded with 50 tons.
  5. 2 horses to pull a canal boat loaded with 50 tons.
  1. When was the first section of the canal completed?
  2. 1799
  3. 1819
  4. 1825
  5. 1904
  1. In what year was the canal widened to 80 feet?
  2. 1827
  3. 1835
  4. 1862
  5. 1956
  1. The Erie Canal had a positive impact on New York’s port economy.
  2. True
  3. False
  1. Which of the following cities was considered a “boom town” as a result of the construction of the canal?
  2. Rochester
  3. Detroit
  4. Philadelphia
  5. Baltimore
  1. Where did many of the construction workers on the canal die from “swamp fever”?
  2. Montezuma
  3. Lockport
  4. Tonawanda
  5. Black Rock
  1. The land between the Hudson River and Lake Erie rises approximately ______feet.
  2. 75
  3. 250
  4. 600
  5. 1,000
  1. Canal locks were first introduced during the construction of the Erie Canal.
  2. True
  3. False
  1. How many locks did the original Erie Canal contain?
  2. 72
  3. 83
  4. 98
  5. 113
  1. When was the entire Erie Canal completed?
  2. 1798
  3. 1817
  4. 1825
  5. 1923
  6. The Erie Canal
  7. Opened a continuous water route linking the Great Lakes with New York City’s harbor on the Atlantic coast.
  8. Speeded up settlement of the Great Lakes region
  9. Created the easiest, quickest, and cheapest way to send goods from the Northeast to the West.
  10. All of the above.
  1. As a result of the Erie Canal, ______became the major center for goods being shipped to the Great Lakes ports.
  2. Albany, New York
  3. Buffalo, New York
  4. New York, New York
  5. Detroit, Michigan
  1. The Erie Canal closed after World War II.
  2. True
  3. False
  1. The success of the Erie Canal inspired others. Name another canal connection in the United States.
  2. Pennsylvania had a system of waterways connecting Philadelphia with other parts of the state.
  3. Ohio and Indiana, canals linked the Great Lakes ports with the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.
  4. New Jersey canals connected the Delaware and Raritan Rivers.
  5. None of the above
  6. All of the above