We have learned much about life on the Erie Canal from one of its best friends, Richard Garrity of the Tonawandas. His remembrances of growing up on the canal help us to picture the scene in our minds eye. The following narrative about cooking on the canal is graciously attributed to Garrity and is continued from last week’s edition of Discovery.
“The first day or so after leaving Tonawanda, fresh meat was usually on the menu. After that, the ice was gone and smoked and salted meats were the general fare until the boat stopped at the canalside grocery where the depleted larder was again filled. There were many of these stores at intervals along the canal. A few of the locks had stores on them and supplies could be purchased while locking through.
“Canalside stores stocked anything a canal fleet needed in the way of patent medicines, cooking pots, tinware, candy, food, shoes, clothing, rain gear, and dry goods. Also available were supplies such as hay, oats, straw or shavings, harnesses, horse collars, whiffle trees, towlines, horse bridges, fenders, pike poles, hardware, etc. It was also possible to replenish cooking and drinking water at these places. Kerosene, or coal oil, had to be obtained from these supply points as oil lamps were the only type of illumination used on the canal boats at that time.
“At one time, there were three of these canalside stores between Tonawanda and Lockport. They were called the Four Mile Grocery at Martinsville, the Seven Mile Grocery at Pickard’s Bridge, and the Twelve Mile Grocery at Pendleton.
“When two boats were lashed together, cooking and eating were usually done on the stern boat. When the boats were separated, a basket of food was prepared for the steersman who stayed on the head boat. If this was used up, the steersman ate ashore until the boats were again joined. Fuel for cooking and heating was never a problem on lumber boats because the boatmen sawed up what lumber was needed for firewood from the cargo. Homemade bread, pies, cookies, etc. were baked in the oven of the cookstove in the cabin.
“On arriving at Tonawanda, if a boatman wanted to hire a cook, he was usually told to look up ‘Old Nell.’ If the boatman was desperate, she was hired. Nell was said to be a good enough cook. Although, as a rule, she only lasted one round trip, for, on returning to Tonawanda, she would draw some of her wages and go ashore to visit. On returning to the boat from her visit, she would be drunk as Satan and having a bottle of whiskey with her, she would not bother about getting any meals. A big argument would then ensue and she would get fired. Nell was quite a peppery and noisy gal when full of whiskey. After being fired from her cook’s job, she would mumble and curse about the unappreciative qualities of the boatman who had fired her. I don’t know which disappeared from the local scene first, the Erie Canal boats or Old Nell.”
Doug Farley is the director of the Erie Canal Discovery Center and his column runs every Saturday. The Erie Canal Discovery Center has had 71,925 guests to date. Hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. In addition to many on-site activities, the Discovery Center also features the new “Walk the Canal Village” walking tour.
Canal Discovery w/ Doug Farley
Related Photos
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Doug Farley is director of the Erie Canal Discovery Center. His column runs every Saturday. The Erie Canal Discovery Center is once again open for the season. Hours of operation are now 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
CANAL DISCOVERY: Garrity, cook — part two
- Canal Discovery w/ Doug Farley
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Charles Dickens’ NY travelogue
The British had a great deal of interest in America and its early Yankee culture, and that interest certainly extended to stories about the Erie Canal.
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Canal a route for mass migration
In the 19th century, the Erie Canal carried hundreds of thousands of European immigrants into the heartland of America.
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Canal line boat a rare specimen
The era of heavy commerce on the original Erie Canal began before 1825 and continued onward through the 20th century and the Barge Canal conversion.
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Facelift for Buffalo’s Inner Harbor
The Erie Canal Harbor in Buffalo received a “facelift” and is celebrating its new rebirth.
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Fighting along the Erie Canal
Some of the most interesting stories of the Erie Canal tell of the hand-to-hand combat that took place along the canal.
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Story of ‘Fat Man in a Berth’
“I awoke in the night with a dreadful feeling of suffocation. Cold perspiration stood on my forehead, and I could hardly draw my breath; there was a weight-like lead on my stomach and chest."
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Child labor on the canal
Life on the Erie Canal represented a way of life, all its own. Its unique culture included its own vocabulary, its own laws, its own dangers and its own beauty. In the view of some, it was a hard, demanding life, and no doubt it was for many of the 50,000 or more folks whose livelihoods depended on it during the canal’s peak years
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Railroads along the canal — part one
Very different, yet still very similar, the Erie Canal and the American railroads carved their own path through history.
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Garrity, Cook — Part 2
We have learned much about life on the Erie Canal from one of its best friends, Richard Garrity of the Tonawandas.
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CANAL DISCOVERY: Garrity, cook — part two
We have learned much about life on the Erie Canal from one of its best friends, Richard Garrity of the Tonawandas. His remembrances of growing up on the canal help us to picture the scene in our minds eye. The following narrative about cooking on the canal is graciously attributed to Garrity and is continued from last week’s edition of Discovery.
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