Muskingum River Improvement - canal sites

The Muskingum River Improvement

 
One of the earliest river canalizations in the country, the Muskingum River Improvement served to connect the Ohio and Erie Canal with the Ohio River. A short canal known as the Dresden Sidecut connected Webbsport on the O& E with the Muskingum River.
 
From Dresden to Marietta the improvement was 91 miles in length and opened to commerce the towns in the southeastern quadrant of the state such as Zanesville. The locks on the river are of sufficient size to accommodate the steamboats that plied the river. Today, it is still possible to tour the river and locks on a riverboat, which departs from Marietta. The town of Marietta, the first organized settlement in Ohio and an historic treasure, lies at the mouth of the Muskingum.

      Canal Society of Ohio Inc.

     For more information visit: https://ohiodnr.gov/go-and-do/plan-a-visit/find-a-property/muskingum-river-state-park

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