<P> Construction began July 4 , 1817 , at Rome , New York . The first 15 miles ( 24 km ) , from Rome to Utica , opened in 1819 . At that rate , the canal would not be finished for 30 years . The main delays were caused by felling trees to clear a path through virgin forest and moving excavated soil , which took longer than expected , but the builders devised ways to solve these problems . To fell a tree , they threw rope over the top branches and winched it down . They pulled out the stumps with an innovative stump puller . A pair of huge wheels were mounted loose on an axle . A large wheel , barely smaller than the others , was fixed to the center of the axle . A chain was wrapped around the axle and hooked to the stump . A rope was wrapped around the center wheel and hooked to a team of oxen . The mechanical advantage ( torque ) obtained ripped the stumps out of the soil . Soil to be moved was shoveled into large wheelbarrows that were dumped into mule - pulled carts . Using a scraper and a plow , a three - man team with oxen , horses , and mules could build a mile in a year . </P>
<P> Construction began July 4 , 1817 , at Rome , New York . The first 15 miles ( 24 km ) , from Rome to Utica , opened in 1819 . At that rate , the canal would not be finished for 30 years . The main delays were caused by felling trees to clear a path through virgin forest and moving excavated soil , which took longer than expected , but the builders devised ways to solve these problems . To fell a tree , they threw rope over the top branches and winched it down . They pulled out the stumps with an innovative stump puller . A pair of huge wheels were mounted loose on an axle . A large wheel , barely smaller than the others , was fixed to the center of the axle . A chain was wrapped around the axle and hooked to the stump . A rope was wrapped around the center wheel and hooked to a team of oxen . The mechanical advantage ( torque ) obtained ripped the stumps out of the soil . Soil to be moved was shoveled into large wheelbarrows that were dumped into mule - pulled carts . Using a scraper and a plow , a three - man team with oxen , horses , and mules could build a mile in a year . </P>
where did they start digging the erie canal
where did they start digging the erie canal
Rome , New York
Rome , New York