Pictured is the Canastota Canal Town Museum located on Canal Street.
(Canastota, Syracuse, NY – Jan. 23, 2013) The Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Commission announced recipients of its grant awards at its quarterly meeting in Syracuse Jan. 23. The Commission awarded $45,800 in grants to assist organizations with telling the story of New York’s legendary canals through education, recreation and preservation projects.
Nine organizations from Albany to Buffalo received funding, including three in Central New York: the Village of Canastota in partnership with the Canastota Canal Town Museum, H. Lee White Maritime Museum in Oswego and the History Center in Tomkins County in Ithaca.
The Village of Canastota, in partnership with the Canastota Canal Town Museum, received $7,000 to create two murals depicting the village during the heyday of the Erie Canal. The murals, created by CNY artist Corky Goss, will convey the economic impact of the canal to local communities.
“This grant will further our mission to make Canal Street in Canastota a historic and distinctive place by providing visitors with a visual experience of our economic relationship with the ‘Old Erie Canal’ and at the same time, continue our efforts to enhance the appearance of our Village,” said Mayor Carla DeShaw.
“Distributing grants is critical to helping organizations develop new programs and advance their missions, especially in tight economic times,” said Judy Schmidt Dean, Erie Canalway Commission Chair. “We are pleased to be able to fund these worthy projects in 2013.”
The H. Lee White Maritime Museum in Oswego received $3,500 to prepare materials and seek nomination of Derrick Boat 8 to the National Register of Historic Places.
The History Center in Tomkins County in Ithaca, received $2,050 to re-house its object collection, create a system of collection finding aids and to develop an online and physical exhibit that demonstrates the canal’s impact on the community of Ithaca.
For more information, visit www.eriecanalway.org