William G. Crawford, Jr., author of the award-winning "Florida's Big Dig," is to be interviewed by Jason Dorman, a graduate of Flagler College, for C-SPAN 2 Book TV. The interview is to air the month of May, with a special emphasis on a showing throughout the weekend of May 16 through May 17, 2015. The [...]
Category: Inland waterways
Troubled Waters
Polish Waters
Poland’s inland waterways are underexploited and underdeveloped. They barely account for 0.2% of the country’s total inland transport. In comparison, the proportion is 17% in Germany. The global trend is to promote water transport. Meanwhile, only 10% of Polish waterways have the operability parameters required by the 2002 resolution on the classification of inland waterways. Although the authorities admit that Poland needs to do a great deal in this area, two ministries seem to be acting at cross-purposes. The Ministry of Infrastructure and Development intends to allocate PLN 4 billion to enhance the navigability of Polish rivers. The plans may, however, be thwarted by the Environment Ministry whose draft water bill envisages a considerable rise in charges for water transport of goods and passengers as well as for the use of sluices. As a result, river transport might prove significantly more expensive than that by motorway. The ministry…
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The first dredge machine used in the construction of the Intracoastal Waterway (1882?)
The first dredge used in constructing the Intracoastal Waterway was a crude steel bucket dredge. Each bucket was the size of two average-sized men standing inside. The buckets were attached to a continuous steel chain, powered by steam. First used in the so-called Matanzas-Halifax Cut, the dredge was to join the Matanzas River at St. [...]
North New River Lock No. 1 at South Bay, Florida, ca. 1920’s
Commercial Acetylene Gas Generator, ca. 1905
In the short period of time between kerosene or oil lamps and electricity, many cities, towns, and villages, hotels and businesses throughout America relied upon the often dangerous acetylene gas generator. Such also was the case for canal dredges and excavators running day and night, twenty-four hours a day. The generators mixed calcium carbide and [...]
The Falkirk Wheel of Central Scotland: reconnecting Glasgow and Edinburgh
http://youtu.be/_tBH9SE-Kw8 Designed by Scottish architect Tony Kettle, the Falkirkwheel is one of the most unusually designed rotating boat lifts and systems in the world. Employing Archimedes principle and a 22-horsepower motor, the wheel lifts narrow or canal boats a distance of 79 feet from the Forth and Clyde Canal to the Union Canal. Opening in [...]
The Erie Canal at Lockport, New York (1817-1825)
The construction of the wildly successful Erie Canal in the State of New York set off a new era of canal construction across America. For the first time, an inland waterway provided a connection between New York City on the Atlantic coast and cities along the shores of the Great Lakes like Chicago. The link [...]
The Chesapeake Bay from the Air (5 minutes)
http://youtu.be/FpJz1wsF6Z8. The Chesapeake Bay is an estuary lying inland from the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the states of Maryland and Virginia. Encompassing over 4,479 square miles, it is the largest such body of water in the United States. More than 150 rivers and streams flow into this estuary. The Bay has become environmentally challenged by the [...]
Florida’s Big Dig 