The Morris Canal
The Morris Canal opened [in Bloomfield] in 1831, providing a much needed route for farm produce and manufactured goods. About seven miles of the 173-mile Morris Canal passed through Greater Bloomfield (see
map), basically along what are now East Passaic Avenue and John F. Kennedy Drive.
The Canal was not a continuous waterway, like a river; rather, it was comprised of sections. To pass from north to south through Bloomfield, a canal boat navigated five canal sections:
A waterway that ended a relatively flat 17-mile stretch that originated [west of] Paterson, and entered Bloomfield near East Passaic Avenue.
The 1/2 mile "Inclined Plane #11-E", which took boats downhill from Hoover Avenue to James Street, and vice versa.
A 3/4-mile waterway from James Street to "Lock #
15-E at Montgomery Street.
A canal section from Montgomery Street to an aquaduct over Second River.
[Were there locks or planes in Belleville?]
This picture, taken about 1910, was taken from the Montgomery Street bridge, looking south to the aquaduct over Second River. The house on the hill in the distance was ___ Franklin Street. The multiple story building at mid-distance on the right was a brownstone row house on _____ Street.
Boats on the canal had to be maneuverable in shallow water, and low enough to fit under bridges over the canal, yet large enough to hold cargo. Neither sail- nor steam-powered, they were like barges, typically pulled by rope along the canal by horses or mules or people.
Key to the boats' design was their ability to navigate the locks and planes (see below). This photo (both black & white and colorized) shows a typical canal boat in a "plane car", a device used to tow boats up an inclined plane, in this case Plane #11-E, just north of the Baldwin Street Bridge, shown in the background.
The inclined plane above used _____-powered cables to pull canal boats (fixed inside plane cars--see above) up the railroad-like-plane. The above "plane house" was located on what is now John F. Kennedy Drive, just south of Hoover Avenue. The [first/primary/only?] incline planes for the canal were designed by Ephraim Morris and Ira Dodd of Bloomfield.
Smaller changes in elevation were negotiated using locks, like the one above, located at what is now _________. Gates at the end of a short section of the canal were closed while the water level in that section was raised or lowered to allow the boats to pass.
[Add photos from archives]
These pictures show the Maple Street foot bridge, which still stands today. This bridge was built for the benefit of the employees of the Oakes Wollen Mills.
Pictures taken from the _______ Street bridge.
The Baldwin Street Bridge, about ____.
[Add photo from archives]
These pictures show the _______ Street bridge.
Railroad bridge, still in place today over John F. Kennedy Drive, between Belleville Avenue and Beach Street.