Jesse Hawley and the Erie Canal - Hercules Writes From Prison
Jesse Hawley was the earliest proponent of building a canal across New York.
His essays are a major reason the Erie Canal was completed, helping turn New York into an economic powerhouse early in the history of the United States.
Jesse Hawley
Jesse Hawley grew up alongside the American Revolution in Connecticut.
By age 30, Hawley moved to Western New York where he began buying grain and having it milled before selling it back east.
He very quickly saw the need for internal improvements in his adopted State.
Public Works
In 1803 Hawley wrote to President Jefferson regarding “Capitalists” who were overcharging people for land which was slowing development on the frontier.
His letter recommended that the President use excess federal funds to lay out towns at strategic points (specifically, ports) in an effort to assist in expansion of the “American Empire.”.
Although nothing came of it, the letter is fascinating because it one of the earliest calls for the Government to step in and help individuals at the expense of the wealthy elite.
The Essays of Hercules
Three years later, Hawley had fallen on hard times.
Transporting his flour was so difficult that he could not pay the loans he took out to establish his business and was placed in debtor’s prison.
Jesse spent more than a year and a half in jail, during which time he began publishing a series of fourteen essays under the pen name Hercules which are some of the earliest and most influential arguments in favor of building a canal from Buffalo all the way to Albany.
Hawley’s essays became widely read and were a major impetus for the building of the Erie Canal.
The Erie Canal
Though he always had financial trouble, Jesse’s efforts on behalf of the Erie Canal had him elected to the State Assembly for a session and eventually led to the position of Port Collector in Genesee.
When the Erie Canal was completed in 1825, celebrations broke out across New York.
Hawley became one of the honored speakers at the celebration at the Canal’s western end in Buffalo.
Here are some other public work projects from about this time:
Jonathan Grout Builds America’s First Telegraph
Building: The First Continental Congress - Robert Smith Designs Carpenters’ Hall
For some reason I cannot find a single book about the development of the meter, but there is the movie ‘In Pursuit of the Standard Meter.’
Pick up a copy through the Amazon affiliate link below (you’ll support this site, but don’t worry, Amazon pays me while your price stays the same).
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