n was none the
less a comprehensive, far-reaching scheme, which seemed to assure a
future of ample profits and great public usefulness. Inconsiderable as
this work may appear compared with the modern achievements of
engineering, it was, for the times, a gigantic undertaking, beset with
difficulties scarcely conceivable to-day. Boston was a small town of
about twenty thousand inhabitants; Medford, Woburn, and Chelmsford were
insignificant villages; and Lowell was as yet unborn, while the valley
of the Merrimac, northward into New Hampshire, supported a sparse
agricultural population. But the outlook was encouraging. It was a
period of rapid growth and marked improvements. The subject of closer
communication with the interior early became a vital question.
Turnpikes, controlled by corporations, were the principal avenues over
which country produce, lumber, firewood, and building-stone found their
way to the little metropolis. The cost of entertainment at the various
country inns, the frequent tolls, and the inevitable wear and tear of
teaming, enhanced very materially the price of all these articles. The
Middlesex canal was the first step towards the solution of the problem
of cheap transportation. The plan originated with the Hon. James
Sullivan, who was for six years a judge of the Supreme Court of
Massachusetts, attorney-general from 1790 to 1807, and governor in 1807
and 1808, dying while holding the latter office.

A brief glance at the map of the New England States will bring out in
bold relief the full significance of Sullivan's scheme. It will be seen
that the Merrimac river, after pursuing a southerly course as far as
Middlesex village, turns abruptly to the north-east. A canal from
Charlestown mill-pond to this bend of the river, a distance of 27-1/4
miles, would open a continuous water-route of eighty miles to Concord,
N.H. From this point, taking advantage of Lake Sunapee, a canal could
easily be run in a north-westerly direction to the Connecticut at
Windsor, Vt.; and thence, making use of intermediate streams,
communication could be opened with the St. Lawrence. The speculative
mind of Sullivan dwelt upon the pregnant results that must follow the
connection of Boston with New Hampshire and possibly Vermont and Canada.
He consulted his friend, Col. Baldwin, sheriff of Middlesex, who had a
natural taste for engineering, and they came to the conclusion that the
plan was feasible. Should the undertaking succeed