In the 19th century, a major way of transportation was crafted. This was called the Erie Canal. This Canal led to great economic growth throughout the United States. For example, the Canal brought in many people through the seaports in New York which made it more busy than it already was (Doc. 1a). This made New York City grow tremendously between 1830 and 1860 (Doc. 1a). The Documents say, “Prior to the construction of the Canal, New York City was the nation’s fifth largest seaport, behind Boston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New Orleans.” So, before the building of the Canal the port wasn’t very popular. After the building, New York City was the busiest port in America after 15 years of the opening of the Canal (Doc. 1b). Comparing to the