Rome, New York Canal. On July 4, 1817 construction on the canal began in Rome. The Erie Canal reaches a summit in Rome, attaining an elevation of 420 feet. The first phase was completed in 1825, connecting the Hudson River by waterway to the Great Lakes. It resulted in an increase in trade and traffic between communities around the Great Lakes and New York City, stimulating development along the route. Jesse Williams founded the first cheese factory in the United States at Rome in 1851. Williams also developed the process used today for large-scale cheese manufacturing. There were numerous dairy farms in the
Oswego River (New York) overhaul of the canal system, the Oswego Canal was deepened and refurbished. The canal is now deep and has an overhead clearance of . The Oswego River was listed as a Great Lakes Areas of Concern in The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between the United States and Canada until it was formally delisted on July 21, 2006. The river is known for its steelhead run in the early spring, followed by a salmon run in early autumn. The river is stocked annually by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation with 140,000 Chinook salmon and 20,000 steelhead. Oswego