Book Rec of the Day 1/8/2007

HISTORIES

You surmised that the digging of the Erie Canal must have been an impressive engineering feat. After all, the canal is 363 miles long, crosses mountains, and the unearthing happened in the early-1800s with relatively primitive tools and by relatively inexperienced workers. What you may not have realized, and what Bernstein makes clear, is that the Erie Canal was the lifeline of a young America, connecting East to West, enabling trade, expansion, and immigration. A fascinating look at an often overlooked American wonder.

WEDDING OF THE WATERS: THE ERIE CANAL AND THE MAKING OF A GREAT NATION, by Peter L. Bernstein (W.W. Norton & Company, 2006)