Please find below a list of talks offered by members of the Erie Canal Museum Education Department.
To schedule a talk please contact Director of Education & Public Programming Derrick Pratt at derrick@eriecanalmuseum.org. The Erie Canal Museum is happy to offer Educator Talks by Zoom or Facebook Live, in addition to in person engagements.
Basics of the Erie Canal
Why was the Erie Canal built? How was it built? How was it used once it was built? Where is it now? All these questions and more will be answered in this crash course on “Clinton’s Ditch.”
The Conception of the Erie Canal
While the Erie Canal took only 8 years to dig, getting to the point where people could start digging was a nearly 100 year long process. This talk looks at the early efforts to harness New York’s interior waterways and the political wrangling that almost kept the “Eighth Wonder of the World” from happening.
Construction of the Canal
200 years ago the Erie Canal was completed, ushering in a revolution in transportation. Join an Erie Canal Museum educator in learning more about the eight year process that went into building this “Eighth Wonder of the World” across New York State
Pathway of Resistance: The Erie Canal and the Underground Railroad
This constantly evolving talk examines the experience of African-Americans along the Erie Canal Corridor, with a particular focus on the struggle for abolition. Examining the topics of slavery, racism, and resistance this talk’s subject matter is critical to understanding our society today.
Waterway of Change: Women and the Erie Canal
The Erie Canal revolutionized Upstate New York, bringing new ideas, people, and industries to the region, sparking a firestorm of change. This presentation will cover how the fight for women’s rights grew out of the changes brought about by the Erie Canal and the movement’s dependence on networks that the Canal facilitated.
Immigration on the Erie Canal
The story of the Erie Canal is in many ways a story of immigration, with thousands of migrants traveling and working on and along the Canal’s waters. Learn more in this talk about the many ways in which immigrants impacted the construction, operation, and culture of the Erie Canal.
Revolutionary Waterway: The Erie Canal & the American Revolution
While the Erie Canal opened 50 years after the beginning of the American Revolution, this talk examines how the Revolution shaped the people, places, and ideas that ultimately created this enormously influential public work.
Erie Eats: Food and the Erie Canal
Food is the most basic building block of human life. We all need it to survive and thrive. But where does our food come from? How does it get to where we can eat it? Who decides what products will be available to us to eat? The answers to all of these questions, for people in Upstate New York and throughout the United States, were radically transformed by the completion of the Erie Canal in 1825 and continued to change dramatically over the next 200 years as the Canal itself changed.
The Beer-ie Canal Was A-Risin’: Brewing on the Erie Canal
The Erie Canal was a transformative waterway for various industries along its route, including brewing, which flourished from Albany to Buffalo. This discussion examines the Canal’s beer boom in the 19th century and its new one in the 21st.
Reframing the Canal: Art and the Erie Canal
The Erie Canal has tremendously impacted both the State and the Nation in its two hundred years of history. The Canal itself—in addition to how we remember it and talk about it—helps shape American culture and our current reality. Through 19th century artwork, public murals and monuments, as well as work by past Erie Canal Artists-in-Residence, examine the relationship between art, memory, heritage tourism, and history.
The Emporium: New York City and the Erie Canal
The Erie Canal transformed all the cities and towns that it connected, but none more so than New York City. While not on the Canal’s route itself, the Erie’s opening in 1825 made it the critical juncture point between the Atlantic Ocean and the continent’s interior and helped it become America’s foremost city. This talk explores the many ways the Erie Canal was influenced by and had influence on New York City society, economics, politics, and culture.
The Genesee Valley Canal
The Genesee Valley Canal was one of the more audacious canals constructed by New York State following the completion of the Erie Canal. Despite its relatively short lifespan and lack of financial success, it nonetheless had a transformative impact on the Genesee Valley.
Across the Canal: Then and Now
In the last 200 years, New York, and indeed the nation, has been immensely transformed by the Erie Canal. But how? What would Governor DeWitt Clinton have seen two centuries ago and how have the communities along his namesake Ditch changed in that time?
About Our Educators
Derrick Pratt (he/him) is the Director of Education & Public Programming at the Erie Canal Museum in Syracuse, NY. A native of Chittenango, NY, Derrick received a B.A in Social Studies Education from SUNY Cortland and a M.A. in Museum Studies from Syracuse University. Prior to his job at the Erie Canal Museum, Derrick served as Director of Programs at Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum for 3 years.
Steph Adams (they/them) is the Interpretation Director at the Erie Canal Museum in Syracuse, NY. Originally from Sherrill, NY, Steph received a B.A. in Art History from SUNY Geneseo and dual M.A. degrees in Art History and Museum Studies from Syracuse University. They are very grateful to have found a job that allows them to do fun things like ride on canal boats and read books.