Scene on the Erie Canal, 1842; wash drawing.

The canal was a major achievement that improved the nation’s transportation infrastructure and provided great economic
benefit for much of the country.

The Erie Canal opened, connecting the Great Lakes with the
Atlantic Ocean via the Hudson River. Governor DeWitt Clinton
of New York, the driving force behind the project, led the
opening ceremonies and rode the canal boat Seneca Chief
from Buffalo to New York City.

Work began on the waterway in 1817. Teams of oxen plowed
the ground, but for the most part the work was done by
immigrants, among them Irish diggers who had to rely on
primitive tools. They were paid $10 a month, and barrels of
whisky were placed along the canal route as encouragement.

Erie Canal Opening with Governor Clinton (1769-1828).

Neil Edward Goldschmidt (June 16, 1940 – June 12, 2024)
    
    
    
    
   

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) – Former Oregon governor, Portland
Mayor and admitted sexual abuser Neil Goldschmidt has
died at age 83, according to his family. The reported cause
was heart failure.

Prior to leaving the public eye, Goldschmidt admitted to sexually
abusing a minor.

The portrait of former Governor Neil Goldschmidt was
removed from the Legislative Library on the fourth floor
of the Oregon State Capitol in 2011.

Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004)

As the 40th president of the United States, the former movie star
was called the “Great Communicator” for his ability to get through
to ordinary Americans and give them hope and optimism for their
own future and that of their country.

But before his years of Hollywood stardom, and long before
Washington, Ronald Reagan was born on February 6, 1911,
in Tampico, a small town in northwestern Illinois.

Ron Desantis is a Republican politician who became the United
States Representative for Florida’s 6th congressional district in
2013. He has served under the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. In 2019, he became Florida’s 46th governor.

He was captain of the varsity baseball team in his senior year at 
Yale University, where he graduated magna cum laude with a B.A.
in History in 2001.

In 2007 he was assigned to SEAL Team One and deployed to Iraq
with the troop surge as the Legal Advisor to the SEAL Commander, Special Operations Task Force-West in Fallujah, and was later
awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Iraq Campaign Medal for
his service.
(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

SALEM, Ore. — Gov. Tina Kotek has awarded the Law
Enforcement Medal of Ultimate Sacrifice to fallen Nyssa
police officer Cpl. Joseph Johnson.

The award will be presented to Johnson’s family at his
memorial service today.

Johnson was shot and killed while on patrol last Saturday
night in the eastern Oregon town of Nyssa.

Gov. Tina Kotek