Robert K. Nelson, Scott Nesbit, Edward L. Ayers, Justin Madron, Nathaniel Ayers, and Beaumont Smith, Canals, 1820-1890

Part of the University of Richmond Digital Scholarship Lab's American Panorama project, this site uses spatial and historical transportation data visualized as interactive maps and graphs to bring to life the system of canals that transformed the American economy in the 19th century by connecting the eastern population centers and Atlantic ports to areas west of the Appalachian Mountains. Users can click on the map or menu to learn about individual canals and how and when canals were connected to each other; choose a commodity carried along the canal to learn about what it was and the quantities that moved back and forth; and manipulate the timeline to see how trade volumes changed over time.