Mission of the Erie Canal Drama Theatre

The specific purpose of the Erie Canal Drama Theatre is to portray and celebrate the human drama of the creation and utilization of the Erie Canal and its impact upon our nation primarily by means of dramatic productions. The public objective of this purpose is to bring live audiences performances which shall enhance their understanding of the genius of those who conceived of the Erie Canal, the talent of those who planned and engineered it, and the strengths, deprivations, and burdens of the laborers who built the canal with the hope those audiences will bestow upon this grand peaceful accomplishment reverence equal to that which they bestow upon battlefield monuments.

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Canal Engineers and Workers

Read brief, interesting article about Erie Canal engineers and workers here.
(Click on the word "here.")

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

IN SEARCH OF DESCENDANTS OF THOSE WHO BUILT THE ERIE CANAL

Two years ago the Erie Canal Drama Theatre was able to find some of the descendants of Governor DeWitt Clinton, the father of the Erie Canal. For several years we have been trying to find descendants of those who helped construct the Erie Canal from 1817-1825.
It is our understanding that many of the workers, the diggers, some of the contractors, and others settled in some of the villages, towns, and cities now along the Erie Canal. We are hoping that more research will be done in these places to find descendants of early canal workers and if they have any information we would like to hear from those who would like to know more about their own families involved in the Erie Canal.
Since there were over 9,000 men who worked on the original canal there must be millions of people who descended from these workers. As far as we know, there are only one or two diaries of those who built the canal now in existence. Diaries or letters from these early workers would be very valuable.  Please contact Hugh Pratt, Executive Director, Erie Canal Drama Theatre, in Buffalo, New York. Phone 716-844-3315.
We do have a list of many of the workers who worked on the canal from 1817-25. Perhaps your family relative is on that list. You should be very proud if he is. He helped create one of America’s greatest monuments.

Saturday, March 19, 2016

CLINTON’S DITCH THE STORY OF THE BUILDING OF THE ERIE CANAL


A Brief Description of the Play

In 1817, DeWitt Clinton, the Governor of New York, is challenged to construct the Eire Canal which would be the longest canal in the world. Nine thousand ditch diggers, many of them immigrants, endure harsh conditions trying to dig with their hands and shovels, through mountains, swamps, rivers, during their 8 years of building the famous Erie Canal. In the end they did prevail in building a national monument but with little, or any, recognition of their role in constructing the Erie Canal.

As the play is developed the laborers fight one battle after another against the resistance of nature. Each scene in the play is a tremendous challenge for the diggers. There are battles against the local town’s people of Up State New York who hate immigrants. They struggle in the freezing winter and the force of nature which kills the spirit.The heat of the summer brings sickness and death.

DeWitt Clinton is the John the Baptist of the New York Frontier, crying in the wilderness to complete his big ditch and the land that God has given America. He becomes the father of the Erie Canal. The political scenes are much like the political battles of modern America. But he endures and prevails against the evils of his time. The message is about how to face the evils of the 21st century and developing a vision for a better world for all human beings.

Thursday, March 10, 2016

Our play, Clinton's Ditch, celebrates the history of the building of the Erie Canal. 2017 is the 200th anniversary of the start of the work on the canal and thus is an appropriate time for performing this play. If you are interested in honoring those who sacrificed much to change history through live theatre, and would like to produce our play, please contact us at: canaltheatre@gmail.com

Please visit and "like" our Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/Clintons-Ditch-The-Story-of-the-Building-of-the-Erie-Canal-460658447451271/