Cayuga-Seneca Canal
From The Erie Canal, Oswego Canal and Champlain Canal Guide
| Cayuga-Seneca Canal Facts | |
 The canal wall in Seneca Falls. | |
| Length: | 12 Miles |
| Depth: | 12 Feet |
| Bridge Clearance: | 16.5 Feet |
| Number of Locks: | 4 |
| Channel Markers: | red buoys on the north-west side, green on the south-east side. |
| Towns Along the Erie Canal | |
| Seneca Falls | |
The Cayuga-Seneca Canal connects the Erie Canal to Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake of the Finger Lakes Region of New York. Departing from the Erie Canal at the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge near Seneca Falls, it is a quick trip through one lock to Cayuga Lake. Continuing along the canal through an additional three locks brings you to Seneca Lake.
Contents |
[edit] Cayuga-Seneca Canal History
The Cayuga-Seneca Canal is unique among the four main canals remaining today. Unlike the others, its was built in stages, and went through many enlargements, route changes and lock location changes. The first canal in the area opened in 1821 and only connected Seneca Lake to the Seneca River Outlet at Cayuga Lake and consisted of eight locks. This canal was a moderate success, but locals yearned for a navigable route from Seneca Lake to the New Erie Canal. In 1825 they got their wish and the canal was to be extended to connect with the Erie Canal. This extension added 4 locks and added 12.5 miles to the length and officially in 1828.
The new canal system brought wealth to the region, but also headache. Water level fluctuations in the area caused many boats to bottom out in the canal in times of drought and the surrounding lands to flooded in times of heavy rain. Furthermore, all the locks were built out of wood rather than stone which meant that they required constant maintenance. There were many attempts to correct the problems; dams were constructed, channels were dug deeper, and adjustable dam gates were installed. Unfortunately these attempts only were a band-aid on the larger problems on the waterway.
The New York Legislation appropriated funds to correct the problems, but on a rolling basis which meant that some places got better while old wooden locks decayed further. Two conditions of the new funds were that all new projects would be made of stone for durability and made to a minimum dimensions of the new enlarged Erie Canal. This marks the 3rd generation of the Canal System, which started in 1836 and work continued on and off until 1862.
New locks were created and others removed, target water levels were changed slightly along the existing route, dams were rebuilt and move-able gates were added. All these efforts payed off in the end and the canal was a large success. The route went relatively unchanged for about 50 years when a new much larger canal would be built.
The modern Barge canal was built along the route utilizing the river itself and no artificial canals. This resulted in a large change to the area; the mill area of Seneca Falls would be submerged under what is now Van Cleef Lake, the route would not begin in Geneva, the Seneca Outlet would not directly enter Cayuga Lake as in the past and the village of Cayuga would not be the entrance into the lake. The 11 previous locks were replaced by only four modern locks.
[edit] Cayuga-Seneca Canal Locks
| Lock # | Location | Lift
(feet) | Distance to Next Lock North | Distance to Next Lock South | Lockmaster Phone # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lock CS1 | Cayuga | -- | 1 miles to Erie Canal | 4 | (315) 253-7523 |
| Lock CS2 | Seneca Falls | 49 ft total | 4 | 0 | (315) 568-5797 |
| Lock CS3 | Seneca Falls | 49 ft total | 0 | 5 | (315) 568-5797 |
| Lock CS4 | Waterloo | -- | 5 | 4 miles to Seneca Lake | (315) 343-5232 |
[edit] Cayuga-Seneca Canal Photos
 Trinity Church (Photo by NYS Canal Corp.) |
[edit] Marinas along the Cayuga-Seneca Canal
- Cayuga Marina, 6721 River Road Route 90, Cayuga, NY 13034, (315) 252-5754
- Seneca Falls Harbor, 60 State Street, Seneca Falls, NY 13148, (315) 568-2703
- Waterloo Harbor & Campground, 1278 Waterloo-Geneva Rd., Waterloo, NY 13165, (315) 539-8848
- Hidden Harbor Marina, 1076 Waterloo-Geneva Rd., Waterloo, NY 13165, (315) 539-8034
- A & B Marinem, 634 Waterloo-Geneva Rd., Waterloo, NY 13165, (315) 781-1755
- Inland Harbor Marina, 608 Waterloo-Geneva Rd., Waterloo, NY 13165, (315) 789-7255
- Barrett Marine Inc., 485 W. River Rd., Waterloo, NY 13165, (315) 789-6605
- Montour Falls Marina, Marina Drive, Montour Falls, NY 14865, (607) 535-9397
- Stiver's Seneca Marine, 401 Boody's Hill Road, Waterloo, NY 13165, (315) 789-5520