WHAT IS A CANAL A canal is a human made river Canals are used to move goods and people Most canals connect two bodies of water Canals were particularly important before trains cars and airplanes were invented People had to use animals to carry or pull goods over land This was slow and hard to do especially if there were mountains in the way Canals provided easier routes for transportation PACKHORSES CANAL
THE ERIE CANAL The first major canal built in the United States was the Erie Canal It was completed in 1825 The Erie Canal crosses New York between the Hudson River and Lake Erie It was one of the few ways to get past the Appalachian Mountains The Erie Canal made transportation from the East Coast to the Midwest much easier As a result communities and trade west of the mountains quickly increased CANADA ERIE CANAL APPALACHIAN MOUNTAINS LAKE ONTARIO LAKE ERIE NEW YORK HUDSON RIVER PENNSYLVANIA
HOW PEOPLE USE CANALS Canals can have many uses These include moving people and goods watering crops and helping control floods SHIPPING Huge ships can travel through large canals such as the Suez Canal in Egypt Canals help these ships move goods around the world
TRAVEL In some places canals are like city streets Venice Italy has canals like this People use boats to get around town IRRIGATION The oldest canals in the world were used for irrigation Farmers used the canal water to water their crops There are still many irrigation canals in use today FLOOD CONTROL Floodgates control the water level in a canal During a storm more water can be kept in the canal Then it doesn't flood nearby areas
