Only eight miles of the Indiana Central Canal were ever completed along this planned route. Imagine a grand scheme to link the Wabash and Erie Canal all the way to the Ohio River, a vision funded by the Mammoth Internal Improvement Act. The state set aside $3.5 million for this single project—the largest piece of the entire $10 million Act.
But the Panic of 1837 brought hard times; Indiana suffered financial difficulties, turned the canal over to its creditors, and building was stopped in 1839. The canal was meant to run 296 miles from Peru to Evansville to reach the Ohio River, originally split into North and South sections and later given a third, the Indianapolis section. Only eight miles were ever completed, with another roughly 80 miles between Anderson and Martinsville partially built.
Before a single trench was dug, the path was surveyed by Jesse Williams, the canal engineer, and the state already owned most of the land. Where they planned a waterway six feet deep and 60 feet wide, you can still picture the ambition: a narrow, reliable ribbon of water mapping a future through the landscape. Notice that only eight miles of this canal were ever completed before Indiana turned the project over to its creditors.