First inauguration of Barack Obama inauguration. More than 180 of the Tuskegee Airmen attended as invited guests for the inauguration. The five-person crew of US Airways Flight 1549 attended the swearing-in ceremony, including Chesley Sullenberger, the pilot who landed the aircraft in the Hudson River near Manhattan after losing both engines due to a bird strike just after departing LaGuardia Airport. Eighty-seven-year-old Sarah Obama led a group of Obama's Kenyan relatives from his father's home village of Kogelo. Other relatives who traveled from Kenya as guests included Obama's aunt, Maggie Obama, his uncle, Sayid Obama, as well as his half-brother Malik Obama. Also, Kenya youth
History of the Hudson River Canal was not the only canal built that connects to the Hudson River. After the completion of the Erie Canal, smaller canals were built to connect with the new system. The Champlain Canal was built to connect the Hudson River near Troy to the southern end of Lake Champlain. This canal allowed boaters to travel from the St. Lawrence Seaway, and then British cities such as Montreal to the Hudson River and New York City. Another major canal was the Oswego Canal, which connected the Erie Canal to Oswego and Lake Ontario. This canal could be used to bypass Niagara