The Dundee Canal was an industrial

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

in Clifton and

Passaic Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city was the state's 16th-most-populous municipality,Passaic County Passaic County ( or ) is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey that is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the county was the state's eighth-most-populous county,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. It was built between 1858 and 1861 and ran parallel to the

Passaic River The Passaic River ( or ) is a river, approximately long, in North Jersey, northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburb ...

. It supplied

hydropower Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, ...

and water for manufacturing. There was interest by some members of the business community to modify the canal to support navigational uses, but the canal was never used for that purpose. The Dundee Canal, along with the advent of

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

s, stimulated rapid economic and population growth in Passaic and the surrounding area through the late 19th and early 20th century.

Description

The canal was about long. The Dundee Dam across the Passaic River was located at the north end of the canal, between Acquackanonk Township (present-day Clifton) and East Passaic (present-day

Garfield ''Garfield'' is an American comic strip created by Jim Davis (cartoonist), Jim Davis. Originally published locally as ''Jon'' in 1976 (later changed to ''Garfield'' in 1977), then in nationwide Print syndication, syndication from 1978, it chro ...

), and it provided water for the canal. The dam was the lowest hydropower site built on the river, just above the

tidal zone The intertidal zone or foreshore is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide; in other words, it is the part of the littoral zone within the tidal range. This area can include several types of habitats with various sp ...

History

Founding and 19th century operations

The Dundee Manufacturing Company (DMC), incorporated 1832, built the Dundee Dam across the Passaic River c. 1833, replacing an earlier

wing dam A wing dam or wing dike is a man-made barrier that, unlike a conventional dam, only extends partway into a river. These structures force water into a fast-moving center channel which reduces the rate of sediment accumulation, while slowing water f ...

it had built c. 1830. The dam was designed to supply water power to clothing mills in the area.Conservation Resources, Inc. (2010)
"Dundee Park Riverfront Greenway: Historic Dundee Dam."
Accessed 2011-10-03. The company also built a deep, long canal c. 1833, adjacent to the site of the later Dundee Canal. It operated the short canal for a few years. In 1857 the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and ...

authorized the company to raise the water level of the dam, and this action flooded adjacent areas and created Dundee Lake. The flooding of various properties led to calls by area manufacturers and other community members to make the canal into a navigable waterway. This would have been an unusual combination of uses for a single canal. The DMC, which had reorganized in 1850, built the Dundee Canal between 1858 and 1861. This canal was not financially successful for navigation, and the company went into

receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver – a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights" – especia ...

in 1864. It reorganized as the Dundee Water Power and Land Company (DWPLC) in 1872, and the company's new emphasis on supplying water and selling land was more lucrative. The Dundee Canal's reliable water supply (both for power and manufacturing processes), and the availability of railroad service in the area (from branch lines that became part of the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Northeastern United States, originally connecting Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City, New Jersey, with Lake Erie at Dunkirk, New York. The railroad expanded west to Chicago following its 1865 ...

) attracted manufacturing businesses to Passaic for the next several decades. The population in Passaic doubled between 1860 and 1880 (to 6,500). Several large textile mills were founded, including the Botany Worsted Mills, established in 1889. By 1900 the city population was 25,000. With increased

urban development Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of peop ...

in the late 19th century, the canal water became dirtier and therefore less usable by the adjoining textile mills, but the water source was still useful for other industries, such as

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Types of polyisoprene ...

and

paper manufacturing A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt ...

, as well as for fire protection.

20th century

Industrial use of the canal declined significantly during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, and woolen manufacturing also declined. The canal continued to accumulate a large quantity of trash, and in the late 1930s the City of Passaic leased a portion of the canal, installed a culvert and paved it over, for parking lots and other public uses. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

ownership of the canal changed several times. A group of investors bought the DWPLC in 1946, and the company was sold to the Hackensack Water Company in 1974. Much of the remainder of the canal was destroyed starting in 1997, as the moribund waterway was used to extend the

New Jersey Route 21 Route 21 is a state highway in Northern New Jersey, running from the Newark Airport Interchange with US 1-9 and US 22 in Newark, Essex County to an interchange with US 46 in Clifton, Passaic County. The route is a four- t ...

freeway and replace the old surface route over city streets. The canal bed was filled and used as a foundation for the highway from approximately its

headwaters The headwater of a river or stream is the geographical point of its beginning, specifically where surface runoff water begins to accumulate into a flowing channel of water. A river or stream into which one or many tributary rivers or streams flo ...

to Dayton Avenue.

Dundee Canal Industrial Historic District

The Dundee Canal Industrial Historic District was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on January 21, 1999. The district comprises the canal and several former

textile mill Textile manufacturing or textile engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful good ...

s, including the Botany Worsted Mills; the Acquackanonk Water Company Site; and related structures.

References

External links

* * {{NRHP in Passaic County, New Jersey 1832 establishments in New Jersey 1872 disestablishments in the United States 1974 disestablishments Buildings and structures in Passaic, New Jersey Canals in New Jersey Clifton, New Jersey Passaic River Economic history of New Jersey Historic American Engineering Record in New Jersey Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in New Jersey National Register of Historic Places in Passaic County, New Jersey Canals opened in 1861 Canals on the National Register of Historic Places in New Jersey Transportation buildings and structures in Passaic County, New Jersey Articles with WikiMiniAtlas displaying incorrectly; WMA not showing route