Information about Beardstown And Sangamon Canal
The Beardstown and Sangamon Canal was a canal plan developed in the mid-1830s, with avid backing by Abraham Lincoln, then an Illinois state legislator, to make large portions of the Sangamon River between Springfield, Illinois, and Beardstown, Illinois, navigable via a canal to the junction with the Illinois River, which in turn flows into the Mississippi River.
Geographical location and the lack of transportation facilities handicapped the growth of central Illinois. In the 1830's, as pioneers settled there, they realized that there was a need for better transportation facilities to move their crops and goods to markets along the Mississippi River. Much of the land was still vacant, but Springfield and the outlying villages could consume only a small fraction of the produce of the county’s farmers, and shipping costs made it uneconomical to send corn and wheat to distant markets.
In the mid-1830s, canals offered the cheapest, most practical means of transportation. The Sangamon River was too shallow in many spots for deeper draft steamers that would be required to carry goods and produce to market. There were several proposals for solving the river’s transportation problem with private financing. As a state legislator from the area, Lincoln pushed for incorporation of a company to undertake the canal project.[1]
In 1836, the Illinois Legislature chartered the Beardstown and Springfield Canal Company, capitalized at $200,000 and authorized to dig a canal part of the way and to improve the Sangamon River’s channel into Macon County, near Beardstown, at the junction with the deeper Illinois River.[2]
Following the company’s successful incorporation, Lincoln remained an avid backer of the project. On February 13, 1836, he addressed a large crowd in Petersburg, Illinois, promoting the Beardstown and Sangamon Canal. At the meeting, the company’s charter was read and a plea for subscriptions was made. Two weeks later, Lincoln purchased a share of stock in Beardstown and Sangamon Canal Company, paying $1 down and owing $4. Seventy-eight shares additional share were bought by 65 others local residents.[3]
The incorporators had enthusiastic backing from local residents and newspapers, but the project was abandoned when an engineering survey of the proposed canal route and accompanying river improvements put the cost at $811,082.<ref name="sancohis" /> The plan was never revived.
Geographical location and the lack of transportation facilities handicapped the growth of central Illinois. In the 1830's, as pioneers settled there, they realized that there was a need for better transportation facilities to move their crops and goods to markets along the Mississippi River. Much of the land was still vacant, but Springfield and the outlying villages could consume only a small fraction of the produce of the county’s farmers, and shipping costs made it uneconomical to send corn and wheat to distant markets.
In the mid-1830s, canals offered the cheapest, most practical means of transportation. The Sangamon River was too shallow in many spots for deeper draft steamers that would be required to carry goods and produce to market. There were several proposals for solving the river’s transportation problem with private financing. As a state legislator from the area, Lincoln pushed for incorporation of a company to undertake the canal project.[1]
In 1836, the Illinois Legislature chartered the Beardstown and Springfield Canal Company, capitalized at $200,000 and authorized to dig a canal part of the way and to improve the Sangamon River’s channel into Macon County, near Beardstown, at the junction with the deeper Illinois River.[2]
Following the company’s successful incorporation, Lincoln remained an avid backer of the project. On February 13, 1836, he addressed a large crowd in Petersburg, Illinois, promoting the Beardstown and Sangamon Canal. At the meeting, the company’s charter was read and a plea for subscriptions was made. Two weeks later, Lincoln purchased a share of stock in Beardstown and Sangamon Canal Company, paying $1 down and owing $4. Seventy-eight shares additional share were bought by 65 others local residents.[3]
The incorporators had enthusiastic backing from local residents and newspapers, but the project was abandoned when an engineering survey of the proposed canal route and accompanying river improvements put the cost at $811,082.<ref name="sancohis" /> The plan was never revived.
References
See also
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the sixteenth President of the United States, serving from March 4, 1861 until his death on April 15, 1865. As an outspoken opponent of the expansion of slavery, he won the Republican Party nomination in 1860 and was
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The Sangamon River is a principal tributary of the Illinois River, approximately 250 miles (402 km) long, in central Illinois in the United States. It drains a mostly rural agricultural area between Peoria and Springfield.
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City of Springfield
City |
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City |
The Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois, built 1868–1888.
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Beardstown is a city in Cass County, Illinois, United States. The population was 5,766 at the 2000 census.
Beardstown was the birthplace of the jazz vibraphone pioneer Red Norvo.
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Beardstown was the birthplace of the jazz vibraphone pioneer Red Norvo.
Geography
Beardstown is located at (40...... Click the link for more information.
Canals are artificial channels for water.
There are two main types of canals: irrigation canals, which are used for the delivery of water, and waterways, which are navigable transportation canals used for passage of goods and people, often connected to (and sometimes
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There are two main types of canals: irrigation canals, which are used for the delivery of water, and waterways, which are navigable transportation canals used for passage of goods and people, often connected to (and sometimes
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Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 273 miles (439 km) long, in the state of Illinois in the United States. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of 40,000 square miles (104,000 km²).
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Mississippi River
Country | United States
States |
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Mississippi River in New Orleans.
Country | United States
States |
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steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving a propeller or paddlewheel.
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Illinois General Assembly is the legislative branch of the government of the state of Illinois in the United States, created by the first constitution adopted in 1818. It works beside the executive branch led by the state governor and the judicial branch led by the supreme court.
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February 13 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 1258 - Baghdad falls to the Mongols, and the Abbasid Caliphate is destroyed.
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18th century - 19th century - 20th century
1800s 1810s 1820s - 1830s - 1840s 1850s 1860s
1833 1834 1835 - 1836 - 1837 1838 1839
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Subjects: Archaeology - Architecture -
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1800s 1810s 1820s - 1830s - 1840s 1850s 1860s
1833 1834 1835 - 1836 - 1837 1838 1839
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Subjects: Archaeology - Architecture -
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Petersburg is a city in Menard County, Illinois, on the bluffs and part of the floodplain overlooking the Sangamon River. The population was 2,299 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Menard County.
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The following is a list of canals in the United States:
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Transportation canals in operation
- Augusta Canal
- Barge Canal (Merritt Island, Florida)
- Cal-Sag Channel (Chicago)
- Cape Cod Canal (Massachusetts)
- Cascades Canal
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