Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

One way to explore the history of the Erie Canal is through art

A mural depicting nature, buildings and airplanes along the Erie Canal
Canal Keepers Staff/Newhouse School

The Erie Canal has long played a role in the art world. In the 1880s, artists traveled the canal by boat, sketching and painting the region around it.

Mark DeCracker, an artist from Lyons, New York, founded Erie Restoration Interests Everyone (E.R.I.E.), an organization that works to preserve history using community art. One of the main restoration projects is Mural Mania: an ongoing art mission that places historical murals throughout towns and villages along the canal.

DeCracker said the Mural Mania Trail has become the longest mural trail in the world, with over 75 murals and more in production.

“These different communities could have their stories told by mural painters from all over the world,” DeCracker said. “We take the artwork down the canal and drop it off, just like they would drop goods off in the 1800s.”

Man standing in front of a portion of a mural depicting the Erie Canal
Canal Keepers Staff/Newhouse School
Mark DeCracker, local artist and founder of Erie Restoration Interests Everyone (E.R.I.E.), in front of one of his Mural Mania project murals, “The Two Heroes of Rose.”

The Mural Mania team is working on a mural that will commemorate the Wayne County bicentennial by showcasing the canal's development from the 1800s to today.

Painting a mural is a yearslong process involving research, sketching, gridding, paneling and gathering quality materials. DeCracker said the artists have to ensure that the mural is historically accurate and aligns with their artistic vision.

“I had a couple of fourth or fifth graders sit in front of the first mural, and they were going, ‘Wow, I didn't know that this happened.’ There was a trolley and a mule that pulled boats in and all that stuff,” DeCracker said. “And I said, ‘Yeah, we’ve got to keep doing this.’ Every community's got a story to tell.”

Listen to the full episode of Canal Keepers here or wherever you get podcasts.

Lauren, a WAER contgributor, (she/her/hers) joined the Newhouse School in Fall 2023 as a faculty fellow in the magazine, news and digital journalism program. She teaches classes in news writing, reporting and multimedia projects.

Lauren graduated from Towson University and moved to Indiana in 2012, where she began her career as a newspaper reporter. She reported on health and social services for the Bloomington Herald-Times. Her work has been recognized by the Indiana chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists and Associated Press Media Editors, as well as the Hoosier State Press Association.