Portkey: Hawley Bridge Traditional Cache

This cache has been archived.

Gryffindor1: Thank you Frenchyfaith for the heads up - I knew
they were cleaning up the trails along the canal,
but I didn't realize that they were clearing to the
extent that they did...

The container is MIA [:(] Fortunately, there were
no TBs in the container - thank goodness for that!
I'm betting that probably one of the workers
snagged it (the container, that is)...

I don't know how much more clearing is going to
happen or for how much longer, so I will be saying
goodbye to this cache...

Thank you everyone who visited - I really enjoyed
all the nice logs and pictures [:)]

Gryffindor1

More
Hidden : 11/15/2006
Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:


In the world of Harry Potter, wizards have many means of moving from place-to-place. One method that can be used to move from one location to another is a Portkey. A Portkey is an ordinary looking item that is enchanted to transport people from one location to another. This cache is a Travel Bug Portkey. The container is an ordinary-looking 50mm ammo can. Bring your Travel Bugs here to be moved quickly. There is room in the Portkey for other trade items as well!

This cache is named for the Hawley Bridge which once resided at this site. I was unable to find much information on the bridge itself except for the fact that it was most likely named after Jesse Hawley, who was a flour merchant from Geneva, NY. He was an early and major proponent of building the Erie Canal.

Struggling to receive shipments and make deliveries over the wretched roadways of the era, Hawley imagined the canal as early as 1805. Eventually, in 1807, Hawley's difficulties in securing reasonably priced transportation drove him to debtors prison for twenty months. While in prison, writing under the name Hercules, he published fourteen essays on the idea of the canal from the Hudson river to Lake Erie; they appeared in the Genesee Messenger.

Considering his modest education and lack of formal training as an engineer or surveyor, Hawley's writing was remarkable; he pulled together a wealth of information necessary to the project, provided detailed analysis of the problems to be solved, and wrote with great eloquence and foresight on the importance the canal would have to the state and to the nation. Though they were deemed the ravings of a madman by some, Hawley's essays were to prove immensely influential on the development of the canal. (information plagiarized from Wikipedia)

I was unable to find any information as to when the bridge was built or when/why it was removed, but we can still see where it was. I will be happy to add any information that someone else may have.

Update - I went to visit the *very* friendly people at the Niagara Historical Society. We were able to find out that the bridge was once used by school children. On the other side of the canal, School #6 resided. The map we were looking at was from the 1800's - so the Hawley Bridge was really old!

New information... Evidently, the School #6 building is still standing on the other side of the canal - it was turned into a house! I also found out that the Hawley Bridge was taken down sometime after 1970. I guess the Erie Canal people had assessed that there were too many bridges along the canal, a lot of which needed extensive repairs. The Hawley Bridge was taken down along with a bunch of others. The bridges at Robinson Road and at Fisk/Feigle Road were built to provide access across the canal in place of all the other bridges that were removed. It's amazing the amount of history in this area - I love it!

This cache is not meant to be difficult at all - just an easy way to move Travelbugs around and enjoy another part of the Erie Canalway trails. Also, please obey the No Parking signs.

Additional Hints (No hints available.)



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