History of the Hudson River hundred years, various groups had sought to have a canal built between the Great Lakes and the Hudson River. This would link the frontier region of the United States to the Port of New York, a significant seaport during that time period as it is today. Construction of the canal began in 1817 and finished in 1825. Originally called "Clinton's Ditch", after NY Governor DeWitt Clinton, the canal proved to be a success, returning revenues of over $121 million after an initial construction cost of only $7 million. After the canal was built, freight could travel from many frontier cities,
Hatherton Canal re-aligned canal. In 2006, the engineers Arup produced a feasibility study for a replacement route for the destroyed section which would link to Grove Basin on the Cannock Extension Canal. Environmental concerns led to a second feasibility study being produced by Atkins in 2009, for a route which connected to the derelict Lord Hayes Branch on the Wyrley and Essington Canal. A short section near the junction with the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is navigable, and the cost of restoring the rest and building the new route to the Wyrley and Essington was estimated at £44.1 million in 2009. The