Q 01/05

Which river forms the eastern end of the Erie Canal?

A) The St. Lawrence

B) The Hudson

C) The Delaware

D) The Susquehanna

Answer · why

B) The Hudson

It gave the Atlantic its first navigable link to the upper Great Lakes above Niagara Falls.

Q 02/05

In what year was the Erie Canal completed?

A) 1840

B) 1832

C) 1848

D) 1825

Answer · why

D) 1825

It opened on October 26, and toll revenue covered the state's construction debt within the first year.

Q 03/05

Which New York governor was the canal's lead supporter, and the butt of its nickname 'the Folly'?

A) Martin Van Buren

B) George Clinton

C) DeWitt Clinton

D) Daniel Tompkins

Answer · why

C) DeWitt Clinton

Opponents also called it 'Clinton's Big Ditch'; he won $7 million from the legislature in 1817.

Q 04/05

When completed, the Erie was the world's second-longest artificial waterway after which one?

A) The Suez Canal

B) The Canal du Midi

C) The Bridgewater Canal

D) The Grand Canal in China

Answer · why

D) The Grand Canal in China

The Canal du Midi and Bridgewater Canal had inspired its planners; Suez did not open until 1869.

Q 05/05

What were the original canal's dimensions?

A) 70 ft wide by 7 ft deep

B) 20 ft wide by 6 ft deep

C) 40 ft wide by 4 ft deep

D) 120 ft wide by 12 ft deep

Answer · why

C) 40 ft wide by 4 ft deep

The First Enlargement widened it to 70 by 7 feet, and the Barge Canal to 120 by 12.