Voyage Commemorating the
Erie Canal in Cayuga County
Welcome Seneca Chief
Cheryl Longyear, Montezuma Town Historian and Vice President of the Old Mentz Heritage Center
For years, critics had mocked Gov. DeWitt Clinton’s canal plan as “Clinton’s Folly” and “Clinton’s Ditch.” Workers had spent eight years building the canal at a cost of $7 million. The canal would cut shipping costs from $100 per ton by wagon to just $10 per ton by boat. Imagine the elation and excitement Clinton felt on Oct. 25, 1825, as he boarded his boat at the Buffalo Harbor. Crowds from Buffalo and nearby villages joined the parade as cannons fired. The entire town turned out for what many saw as New York’s most important day.
A boat named Seneca Chief led a parade of decorated boats as they headed east on their 363-mile waterway route to Albany on the Hudson River. On board was a barrel of Lake Erie water held to perform the Wedding of the Waters ceremony at their final destination in New York City.
An Account of the Original Welcome
The Seneca Chief was accompanied by Noah’s Ark, a boat carrying living symbols of American wilderness: a bear, two eagles, two fawns and several fish, and two Native American young men representing the original inhabitants of the lands the canal passed through. Passing through forests and greeted by small settlements as they headed eastward, the following is a written account of their welcome in Montezuma and Port Byron by Cadwallader D. Colden in a published memoir, “Celebration of the Completion of New York Canals” (1825):
“Arriving in Montezuma at 10:30 PM handsomely illuminated, and a display of fire works was given on their approach. Over the lock (Lock 62) was a very pretty illuminated arch, having, on one side, the inscription, ‘DeWiitt Clinton and Internal Improvements.’ On the reverse, ‘Union of the East and West.’ At midnight they reached Bucksville, and found the place brilliantly illuminated.
At Port Byron, the dawn of the twenty-sixth was ushered in by the firing of cannon. A few minutes past ten, the cannon at Clyde and Montezuma announced the completion of the Canal; the intelligence was sent on by the cannon at Port Byron, and in one hour and thirty-three minutes, the sound was returned from New York. A procession was formed at one o’clock, which proceeded to the dry dock. On their return, the citizens sat down to a dinner, served up in fine style. Among the articles which graced the table, was a fat ox, roasted whole. R. Watson, Esq.. presided, assisted by C. Reed and Hathbone, Esqrs. The Reverend Mr. Gibbs officiated as Chaplain. On the removal of the cloth the company was briefly and appropriately addressed by C. Reed, Esq., after which many excellent toasts were given.
Preparations were also continued for giving a proper reception to the pioneer boats, and conferring due honors upon their passengers. The ladies, always patriotic, were among the foremost in their exertions on the occasion. As the arrival was necessarily in the evening, a ball room was handsomely decorated, and from thirty to forty ladies, arrayed in their sweetest smiles and most beautiful attire, awaited the happy moment when they could ” trip the light fantastic toe,” with the expected strangers. The bridge was superbly decorated. An arch was sprung its whole length, surmounted with evergreens, and gracefully festooned with the twining ivy, and intertwined with flowers of beautiful and various dies. A large, and well executed transparency exhibited the following inscription: ‘July 4, 1817.’
‘Congratulations of the Village of Port Byron, October 29, 1825.’ The boats from the West were welcomed at the bridge by vollies of musketry, and a handsome display of fire works. When they departed, an illuminated balloon was sent up, which rose majestically, and took an easterly direction, along the line of the Canal. A beacon was constantly blazing on the high hill south of the village, and the principal buildings were handsomely illuminated.
Join in the Celebration
On the morning of Wednesday, Sept. 24, the Buffalo Maritime Center’s replica of the Seneca Chief will embark on its own bicentennial voyage, commemorating Clinton’s historic 1825 journey from Buffalo to New York Harbor, with stops at many communities along the way. At each stop, the crew will plant an eastern white pine to honor the Haudenosaunee for their enduring connection to the land and reinforcing our shared commitment to sustainability. Unfortunately, due to the bridge work in Weedsport on Route 34, the Cayuga County stop was canceled. The Seneca Chief will make stops in Clyde on Oct. 2 and Baldwinsville on Friday the 3rd. Although not a stop, Lock 25 at Mays Point will be a great place to see the boat up close. As it enters Cayuga County in Montezuma on the morning of Oct. 3, greeters standing on the Richmond Aqueduct will do their best to honor the past while envisioning the future.
After we welcome the Seneca Chief and watch it pass by Montezuma, the Old Mentz Heritage Center Friends of the Park will plant an eastern white pine tree in Montezuma Heritage Park. Everyone is welcome to come watch with us.
To stay up to date on the tour, follow the Buffalo Maritime Museum’s social media or track the trip using the MarineTraffic app.
Click here to learn more about the Erie Canal Bicentennial in Cayuga County and start planning you visit with our Explore’s Guide.