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Before the Whitewater Canal was built, local farmers had to transport their goods and livestock to Cincinnati on badly rutted and often impassable roads. The journey could take several days.
A “high speed” option was needed, so In 1836 the state legislature approved the Mammoth Internal Improvement Act, which would help fund the canal and other improvements in Indiana. A sum of $1,400,000 was allocated for construction - a huge sum at the time. The canal would run from Lawrenceburg, on the Ohio River, north to Hagerstown, in Wayne County.
Hagerstown was to be the northernmost terminus of the Whitewater Canal, but the state went bankrupt before the canal reached them. So Hagerstown was forced to finance and construct the rest of the canal north from Cambridge City.
In November 1847 the canal section linking to Harrison, Ohio flooded, washed out and was never rebuilt. This ended the canal era for Wayne County. Remains of several canal banks and locks can still be seen in parts of Hagerstown and Cambridge City.
The Cache
Please park in the lot west of the river! There is no need to go under the bridge, but do take a stroll across it to the other end and check out the marker commemorating the northernmost point of the canal.
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