reservoirs. In 1797, one more reconstruction was carried out. This resulted in the dramatic increase of the traffic. Whereas in the 1760s, up to 4000 ships were annually using the canal, after 1775 the amount grew to 55,000 per year. The heaviest traffic was between 1814 and 1849, and then it started to decline due to competition with other waterways and with the railway. In 1778, the Vyshny Volochyok Waterway was defined as a stretch between Tver and the Ladoga Canal. It was subdivided into three parts: One between Tver and Lake Mstino, one more between Lake Mstino and Novgorod, and the third one between Novgorod and the mouth of the Volkhov River. The headquarters of the system were located in Vyshny Volochyok, which was just granted town status in 1770. References CVyshny Volochyok Waterway CVyshny Volochyok Waterway Canals in Russia Geography of Tver Oblast Transport in Tver Oblast Canals opened in 1706 1706 establishments in Russia Cultural heritage monuments of federal significance in Tver Oblast