Program

NYS Historic

Subject

Event

Location

11098 NY-31, Clyde, NY 14433, USA

Lat/Long

43.076639, -76.947034

Grant Recipient

Village of Clyde (Building Department)

Requiring nearly a decade to build, the Erie Canal is an impressive feat of modern engineering. Spanning 363 miles, this artificial waterway featured bridges, aqueducts, and locks which traversed the diverse geography of New York and effectively connected the East Coast to the Great Lakes. The Erie Canal passed through a number of different communities across the state, including the hamlet of Lock Berlin. On July 9, 1844 Lock Berlin was rocked when a brawl occurred between the crew members of two canal boats- Patriot and Texas- as they vied for lead position at the Lock Berlin canal lock. The July 18, 1844 edition of the Clyde Eagle details the event:

The facts in the case appear to be, from the testimony in the examination, that the boat Patriot was trying to pass the scow boat Texas, to get to the lock first, and the scow endeavoring to keep her back by crowding her to the towing path, and while the boats were alongside each other or nearly so, Thomas Knight stepped on to the scow boat for the purposes of pushing the boats apart or for some other purpose, when some words were passed, and he was struck with a club or pole; whereupon the captain of the Patriot went on board the scow, and then there was a general striking with clubs, &c. Jerome Shaw, at this time was in the stern cabin, and had just sat down to his dinner, when on hearing a noise he got up and went out at the cabin window on to the scow, and had scarcely done so when he was knocked down with a club and beaten in so shocking a manner on and around his head that his skull was fractured in many places and a part of it completely beaten in.

Sadly, Jerome Shaw, died from his wounds and Thomas Knight, according to the newspaper article, was not expected to survive.