The Canalmen Phone Case

During the Revolutionary War, George Washington saw a need for a Canal to give greater security to the American fleet against its enemies. Upon General Washington's orders, Thomas Machin, an Engineer with the Continental Army, investigated the feasibility of a Canal in 1776. His report, recommending that a Canal be built, survives as the first known Cape Cod Canal survey. Over the next century numerous surveys and Canal feasibility studies were conducted by various individuals and groups. In 1880 the Cape Cod Canal Company was granted a charter to begin digging. At first, the 500 workers brought in for the job tried to dig with shovels and wheelbarrows before a huge dredge was constructed to supplement the workers’ efforts. However, th...