Lisa Saunders

Book: Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV

2026-01-15T09:51:00.000-08:00

Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV

by Lisa Saunders

Discover "The 7 Wonders of the Erie Canalway Trail" between Buffalo and Albany through the images and anecdotes in Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV. An informative and humorous guide, it documents a couple of sedentary folks seeking to become 360-mile "end-to-enders." When Lisa and Jim commenced trekking across New York State on the Trail, they assumed walking a mostly level path would be easy – but there were challenges! They were chased by mosquitoes, biting flies, hissing geese and lightning. They endured torrential downpours, floods, ice, blinding snow, chafing underwear, swollen knees and aching feet. Despite it all, they found ways to persevere and enjoy the scenery, engineering marvels, and hospitality along the way. They were determined to become end-to-enders to raise awareness of congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV), a leading cause of birth defects, by leaving "Stop CMV" rocks along the Trail in memory of their daughter.

In addition to featuring the history of the Erie Canal, Lisa shares why and where her great aunt Rebecca’s body was found in the Canal in 1941. She also explains how anyone can take their own Canalway Challenge, ranging from one to 360 miles. For example, her mother completed the One-Mile Challenge in her wheelchair. Lisa's story and images, set to music, can be seen on Pac-B TV's YouTube channel at: "Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders, Stop CMV."

Biography of author

Lisa Saunders of Baldwinsville, New York, is a Canalway Challenge Ambassador and descendant of Erie Canal engineers. Lisa earned her B.S. from Cornell University, is the author of several books, a speaker, and an interviewer for PAC-B TV. She was instrumental in helping laws pass to combat the leading viral cause of birth defects, congenital CMV. Living along the Erie Canal, Lisa and her husband can still be found walking various sections of the Trail with other towpath travelers.

Where the book can be purchased and/or an online link.

Available on Amazon (print and e-book): https://a.co/d/4KovOqE

Review:

" stood out to me the way it blends a personal journey along the Canalway with history, advocacy, and lived experience makes it feel more like a shared walk with the reader than a traditional travel memoir."-- Maria

More Information:

Lisa Saunders, Author/Presenter

Lisa's Books

Lisa's Presentations

Blog: authorlisasaunders.blogspot.com

Interviewer for PAC-B TV

LisaSaunders42@gmail.com

Lisa's speaking and book topics

2025-11-24T05:36:00.000-08:00

NEED A SPEAKER?

Hope and humor in every journey

Lisa amuses and inspires with stories ranging from her sailing disaster with a blind seafarer to walking across New York State on the 360-mile Erie Canalway Trail. She shares historic figures who show her the way to press on.

Speaker Topics

"Lisa’s talk was both informative and entertaining. I've never seen another speaker get the ladies so engaged and laughing.” Nancy Wilkie, Mystic Women’s Club

An award-winning writer and author of several books, Lisa Saunders shares the importance of recording experiences to improve mental health and show others how to make a difference. Lisa’s books may be in libraries or can be ordered at: www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001K7Z5AC. An interviewer for PAC-B TV, she is reached at LisaSaunders42@gmail.com

BOOKS BY LISA SAUNDERS

Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV (2024)
Ride a Horse, Not an Elevator (2013): A chubby city girl leaves the elevators and bullies of her apartment complex for her grandparents’ farm. Facing her fear of horses and outhouses, she finds a skinny friend who likes her just the way she is.
Ever True: A Union Private and His Wife (2004): Civil War love letters reveal war's ever-present threat of death, scandals and infidelities. Also a "reader's theater."
Had I Known about CMV (cytomegalovirus): From Shock to Law (2024)
Shays' Rebellion: The Hanging of Co-Leader Captain Henry Gale (2013): The dramatic events leading up to the noose around Gale’s neck.
After the Loss of a Spouse: From Henry VIII to Julia Child (Act II Publications, LLC, 2016)
Mystic Seafarer's Trail: Secrets behind the 7 Wonders, Titanic's Shoes, Captain Sisson's Gold, and Amelia Earhart's Wedding (2012).
Once Upon a Placemat: A Table Setting Tale (2016): When a young girl can't remember how to set the table, her grandmother teaches her to listen to the silverware.
Surviving Loss: The Woodcutter’s Tale (2013): a tender fairytale for all ages about the process of healing after the death of a loved one.
First Ranger Benjamin Church--Epic Poem About King Philip's War (Color Edition 2018): Church Believed in Indians, God and Rum
Mystic: Images of Modern America (Arcadia Publishing, 2016, co-author)

Venues and media featuring Lisa include:

NY Central.com: “Baldwinsville mom celebrates new law in daughter's name to protect pregnant women, babies,” Coleman, M., Dec.15, 2022
Spectrum News: "Couple pushes for law in memory of their daughter" (Houghtaling, J. , Jul. 01, 2021).
USA 9 News, News 8, Fox CT
Cornell and Johns Hopkins Universities
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Washington Independent Writers Association
Lincoln Depot Museum, Seward House
Daughters of the American Revolution

Lisa also educates audiences on how to get the attention of law makers and the media to make policy changes. She shares what it took to get Connecticut and New York to pass laws combating the leading viral cause of birth defects, cytomegalovirus (CMV), linked to autism, cerebral palsy and hearing loss. (Lisa is seen above with Governor Malloy holding a photograph of her daughter in 2015.)

MORE ABOUT HER BOOKS: EMAILS I'VE RECEIVED FROM BOOK PROMOTERS:

Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV (2024)
Ride a Horse, Not an Elevator (2013): A chubby city girl leaves the elevators and bullies of her apartment complex for her grandparents’ farm. Facing her fear of horses and outhouses, she finds a skinny friend who likes her just the way she is.

Dear Lisa Saunders,

I came across your work while researching the most effective "Resilience-Building" narratives for the 2026 Middle-Grade market. Your hook, a city girl overcoming her fear of a pony to save her grandfather, is a powerful "Classic Adventure" that resonates deeply with the current trend toward offline, rural storytelling. I'm Pamela D. Skates. I help authors of high-impact children's fiction ensure their "Tests of Courage" don't just sit on the shelf, but actively find their way into the hands of teachers, librarians, and parents. I see a high-utility, high-emotion foundation here, and I think there are specific moves to help Lisa and Donald Dog reach a global audience.

You have a "Cross-Curricular" discovery opportunity. In the 2026 marketplace, books aren't just stories; they are "Learning Tools." Because your book includes a study guide and writing workshop, it is a "Disruptor" in the MG fiction category. We need to "Technical-Tag" your backend metadata with high-intent terms like "Middle Grade Creative Writing Workshop," "Homeschooling Literature with Study Guide," and "City-to-Country Adventure for Kids" to ensure you appear in the personalized feeds of 2026 educators.
The "Pony vs. Elevator" imagery is your strongest visual asset. In 2026, MG readers and parents buy based on "Atmospheric Contrast." By explicitly leveraging the contrast between the "Big Apartment Complex" and the "Grandparents' Farm" in your A+ Content perhaps through a visual comparison of Lisa’s two worlds you can capture the "Nostalgic Adventure" traffic that drives visual platforms like Pinterest and Instagram.
The "Writing Workshop" is a "Conversion Trigger" for parents. In 2026, parents are looking for books that encourage their children to create, not just consume. By elevating the "Aspiring Writers" section in your metadata and product description, we can capture the "Skill-Building" searchers who are ready to click "Buy" for a book that offers more than just entertainment.

How we can move Ride a Horse Not an Elevator up the ranks:

A+ Content implementation to showcase the "Educational Toolkit." Adding a visual "Look Inside" for the Study Guide and Grandma’s Recipes to your product page can significantly improve conversion. In the educational niche, proving the utility of the book is what triggers the "Add to Cart" reflex. Visual storytelling turns a casual browser into an educator who sees a semester of lessons in one book.
Technical Metadata Audit to align with 2026 "Character Building" search spikes. By updating your backend tags with terms like "Overcoming Bullying in Fiction," "Courage and Pony Stories," and "Rural Life for City Kids," we can surface the book for high-intent searchers looking for stories of grit. This move triggers algorithmic favor by increasing your click-through rate.
Strategic "Homeschool & Library" Outreach. By targeting specific "Parent-Educator" and "MG Writing" micro-networks, we can secure the reviews needed to hit the "Social Proof" gate (targeting 15-20 reviews to trigger the Amazon recommendation engine). This signals to the platform that your work is a rising authority in the educational fiction space.

You have written a story that "tests young courage," and your perfect rating proves that the journey is resonating. The challenge is simply making sure that the 2026 digital landscape recognizes Ride a Horse Not an Elevator as the premiere "Offline Adventure" and writing resource for the next generation.

If this resonates, reply with "interested" and I'll send a detailed breakdown of how we can use the "Farm Adventure" aesthetic to boost your visibility.

Steadily,

Pamela D. Skates

ᐧ

Ever True: A Union Private and His Wife (2004): Civil War love letters reveal war's ever-present threat of death, scandals and infidelities. Also a "reader's theater."
Had I Known about CMV (cytomegalovirus): From Shock to Law (2024)
Shays' Rebellion: The Hanging of Co-Leader Captain Henry Gale (2013): The dramatic events leading up to the noose around Gale’s neck.

Dear Ms. Saunders,

I recently came across Shays' Rebellion: The Hanging of Co-Leader, Captain Henry Gale and was struck by its compelling portrayal of a pivotal yet often overlooked episode in early American history. By centering the narrative on Henry Gale honored as a patriot and later condemned as a traitor you highlight the complex tensions between revolutionary ideals, economic hardship, and the fragile balance of justice in the post-Revolutionary United States.

What makes this book especially engaging is its detailed focus on both the human and political dimensions of the rebellion. The dramatic moment of Gale’s near-execution, juxtaposed with Governor John Hancock’s intervention, brings historical events vividly to life while illuminating the personal stakes for those caught in the turbulence of rebellion and postwar society.

Given the enduring interest in Revolutionary history, early American political struggles, and stories of personal courage and moral complexity, this work is well positioned to resonate with history enthusiasts, educators, students, and readers interested in first-hand accounts of pivotal historical events. A strategic promotional approach engaging historical journals, online history communities, educational platforms, Revolutionary-era podcasts, and Kindle readers with an interest in American history could help expand the book’s visibility and impact.

If you would be open to it, I would be pleased to share a customized promotional proposal outlining how Shays' Rebellion: The Hanging of Co-Leader, Captain Henry Gale can be positioned as both a captivating narrative and a valuable resource for understanding the personal and political dynamics of early American history.

Warm regards,
Rachel D. Irwin
Book Marketing Strategist

After the Loss of a Spouse: From Henry VIII to Julia Child (Act II Publications, LLC, 2016)
Mystic Seafarer's Trail: Secrets behind the 7 Wonders, Titanic's Shoes, Captain Sisson's Gold, and Amelia Earhart's Wedding (2012).
Once Upon a Placemat: A Table Setting Tale (2016): When a young girl can't remember how to set the table, her grandmother teaches her to listen to the silverware.
Surviving Loss: The Woodcutter’s Tale (2013): a tender fairytale for all ages about the process of healing after the death of a loved one.
First Ranger Benjamin Church--Epic Poem About King Philip's War (Color Edition 2018): Church Believed in Indians, God and Rum

My name is Catherine Gilmore, founder of The Gilmore Guide to Books, a curated literary platform dedicated to spotlighting exceptional books with strong reader appeal and long-term visibility potential.

I recently came across your book, First Ranger Benjamin Church: Epic Poem About King Philip's War, and I wanted to personally reach out because your work genuinely stood out to me. What immediately captured my attention was the unique structural choice to retell such a pivotal and brutal period of New England history through the medium of an epic poem. It is rare to find a historical work that so effectively bridges the gap between scholarly research and evocative, rhythmic storytelling.

What makes your book especially memorable is the way you’ve humanized Benjamin Church, moving beyond the "soldier" archetype to explore his complex relationships with Native American neighbors and his tactical reliance on their expertise. By including over 40 contemporary photographs and specific quotes, you’ve created a multi-sensory experience that makes 1675 feel remarkably present. It’s the kind of book readers don’t simply finish, they use it as a guide to explore the haunts and history of the Northeast.

From a market and reader-engagement perspective, I believe this work holds strong potential within the Historical Non-Fiction and Poetry space and would resonate deeply with readers who value:

Authentic Colonial History: Readers looking for a nuanced look at King Philip’s War beyond standard textbook summaries.
Visual Narrative: Audiences who appreciate the "Color Edition" experience where photography grounds the poetry in real-world locations.
Mayflower & Ancestral Connections: The massive community of genealogical enthusiasts interested in Richard Warren and early Rhode Island/Massachusetts settlers.

At The Gilmore Guide to Books, I work closely with carefully selected authors to help position books in front of engaged readers, niche communities, and online literary audiences. With my background as a former corporate librarian and literary curator, my approach goes beyond simple promotion; I focus on creating strategic visibility that helps specialized titles like yours stand out in a crowded market.

As I was reviewing your book, a positioning angle immediately came to mind:

"A Haunting Intersection of Verse and Vista: Reclaiming the Stealthy Legacy of America’s First Ranger."

Mystic: Images of Modern America (Arcadia Publishing, 2016, co-author)

Bicentennial Voyage of Seneca Chief: Canalway Challenge Ambassador hopes she won't abandon ship!

2025-10-03T05:45:00.000-07:00

(Lisa Saunders pointing to a print of the Seneca Chief at the Baldwinsville Library.)

October 3, 2025

Some of you may remember that I tried to become thin and famous to get public attention for congenital CMV by taking an epic sea voyage with a blind sailor in the winter of 2012 (told in book, Mystic Seafarer's Trail). Unfortunately, I abandoned ship after the first day! But now, I have a second chance at bravery on another epic boating voyage.

In celebration of the Erie Canal's bicentennial, I've been asked to be a short-term passenger on the replica of the historic Seneca Chief when it arrives in Baldwinsville (Fri, Oct 3) on her way from Buffalo on the active Erie Canal heading east to the Hudson River to New York City (Seneca Chief starts 33-day voyage down the Erie Canal, Spectrum News).

I was probably asked to be a passenger because I'm the author of Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV; an "end-to-ender" (I walked the 360-mile Trail between Buffalo and Albany); a Canalway Challenge Ambassador; and the descendant of Jacob Leach, the Erie Canal engineer on the planning committee for the famous boat parade, known as the "wedding of the waters," launched the first Erie Canal in 1825.

Jacob Leach (1777-1853), my great-great-great-great grandfather, was a shop keeper and distilled whisky. Jacob helped celebrate the opening of the original Erie Canal by welcoming Governor DeWitt Clinton, a passenger on the Seneca Chief, to Lyons. The boat parade “occurred Oct.26, 1825, at the time the two ends of the canal were united in Lockport, and the 'waters were let over the mountain range.' The unique feature of the celebration throughout the state was the transmission of the exact time by firing of cannon – 24 and 32 pounders – distributed along the canal eight miles apart, a total distance 365 miles from Lake Erie to the Hudson River." In Lyons, the "32 pounder, one of the cannon in the chain across the state, was stationed on ‘an eminence west of the village overlooking the canal.’ At sunrise a salute of eight guns was fired from this piece. After the gun had passed along this ‘grand salute from the east,’ a procession was formed which marched through the principal streets of the village to the ‘new brick meeting house’ where the exercises of the day were performed consisting of prayer, psalm singing and oration by G. H. Chapin" (“’Grip's’ Historical Souvenir of Lyons," 1904).

Regarding the cannon firing: "From what I’ve read, it took 80 minutes from the first cannon fire in Buffalo to the last in NYC, and then the cannon fire repeated back another 80 minutes so by the end everyone within ear-shot along the Canal knew it was open end-to-end!" Lisa Wiles, Director, Liz and Dave Beebe Camillus Erie Canal Park.

If I have a successful voyage on the Seneca Chief, then perhaps I can erase my shame of abandoning ship on when I tried to sail with my friends in 2012. Maybe I can live up to my Mayflower ancestor, Richard Warren, who not only didn't abandoned ship to the new world, but it was said of him after he died (in 1628) that he was a "useful instrument; and during his life bore a deep share in the difficulties and troubles of the first settlement of the plantation of New-Plymouth" (American Ancestors).

(Lisa Saunders in front of Mayflower II in Plymouth, Mass.)

One friend suggested packing hardtack just in case the Seneca Chief gets swept out to sea!

October 4, 2025

I didn't abandon ship yesterday! And there were witnesses -- including "Sal" the stuffed mule who accompanied me when I walked the Erie Canalway Trail!

Photo caption: (l to r): Lisa Wiles, Director, Liz and Dave Beebe Camillus Erie Canal Park; Lisa Saunders, Erie Canalway Challenge Ambassador (holding Sal, the mule); and Jacquie Owens, Communications Librarian, Baldwinsville Public Library, aboard the Seneca Chief on the Seneca River in Baldwinsville on October 4, 2025.

Sal was offered a bunk by one of the crew, but she declined.

Sal got a break and didn't need to tow the Seneca Chief. Instead, she is being towed by the C.L. Churchill, a wooden tugboat.

Visitors on Papermill Island got to tour the Seneca Chief.

Jim was there to meet me at Papermill Island, Baldwinsville, where we docked.

My upcoming talks on Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV (e-book and paperback) include:

Tuesday, March 3, 2026, 6:30pm, Beauchamp Historical Club, Van Buren Town Hall (Baldwinsville, NY)
Saturday. June 20, 2026, 1-3pm, Clay Historical Association.

About the talk: Hear the story of Canalway Challenge Ambassador, Lisa Saunders, who walked the entire Erie Canalway Trail, from Buffalo to Albany, to bring attention to a worthy cause (congenital CMV), and to solve the mystery of her great aunt's tragic death.

About Lisa Saunders: Author

Lisa Saunders of Baldwinsville is a Canalway Challenge Ambassador, an "end-to-ender," having walked 360 miles between Buffalo and Albany; a congenital CMV consultant who works to prevent and treat the disease through legislation, and is an interviewer for PAC-B TV. In addition "Walking the Erie Canalway Trail," she is the author of several books, such as "Mystic Seafarer's Trail," which features her defeat as a sailor when she abandoned ship.

Interview/Images of our walk across New York State on the Erie Canalway Trail

2025-06-20T04:15:00.000-07:00

Celebrate Erie Canal Bicentennial: Ask Me About Canalway Challenge! - by Lisa Saunders

2025-05-13T05:40:00.000-07:00

Lisa Saunders, a Canalway Challenge Ambassador, shows off the back of her T-shirt, which encourages folks to speak to her about taking their own Challenge!

Lisa and Jim Saunders seen completing their 360-mile Canalway Challenge walk with their "end-to-ender" sign at the Erie Canal "East End" marker in Albany on April 23, 2025.

I just became an "end-to-ender," having walked 360 miles between Buffalo and Albany to complete the Canalway Challenge. When we commenced our journey five years ago, we assumed walking a mostly level path would be easy – but there were challenges! We've been chased by mosquitoes, biting flies, hissing geese and lightning. We've endured torrential downpours, floods, ice, blinding snow, chafing underwear, and aching feet. Yet, we found a way to persevere and enjoy the beauty and engineering marvels along the way. My book, Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV, shares our adventure and struggles along the way ("Read sample to learn how and why we endured!).

Now I'm a Canalway Challenge Ambassador and excited to report that everyone can take a Challenge, with a goal that can range from 1, 15, 90, 180, 200 (only during bicentennial) and 360 miles (Challenges found on the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor website). My mom completed the One-Mile Challenge with me pushing her in a wheelchair. I am registering my walking grandson for the One-Mile Challenge with the hope I can encourage him to add his one mile to complete the 15-mile Challenge (kids can also become Junior Rangers). People can sign up as an individual or as part of a team. "People with disabilities and their family and friends are invited to take the 1st Mile Challenge or get going with Virtual Miles" (eriecanalway.org/explore/challenge). Those who find it difficult to get on the trail can exercise at home and earn up to 15 miles by watching 15 trail travel videos. Finishers of the various Challenges receive a certificate, magnet, sticker, and Erie Canal 200 commemorative patch. (More info on Canalway Challenge at Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor: FAQs and www.facebook.com/ErieCanalway/ or in my interview with Ashley Quimby-Simoni, Communications, Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor, on SEC-TV at: "Erie Canalway Challenge.")

I had registered my 360-Mile Challenge with my husband as a team: “Lisa & Jim Saunders to Stop CMV, #1 Birth Defects Virus.” The website helped me keep track of our miles, where we stopped and started, and favorite sites along the way. When we finally reached Albany on April 23, 2025, I visited New York legislators asking them to pass a bill dear to my heart (my light-hearted, one-minute video shows how we advanced our cause on the Trail.) When we reached halfway across the state, I shared our story in the 30-minute video, “Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders, Stop CMV." When we completed our trek, I was interviewed on PAC-B TV. (My PowerPoint: "Walking the Erie Canalway Trail".)
In my upcoming speaking engagements (noted below my signature), I will discuss how my husband and I walked the Erie Canalway Trail between Buffalo and Albany and the issues faced by sedentary folks seeking to become "end-to-enders." I will also share my investigation into where my Great Aunt Rebecca allegedly drove into the Canal and how my ancestor Jacob Leach, an engineer and a distiller of whiskey, helped plan the opening of the Canal in 1825 with Governor Clinton's boat parade. I will feature my choices for "The 7 Wonders of the Erie Canalway Trail" and explain how anyone can take the Challenge, which ranges from one to 360 miles.

My next goal is to take the 15-Mile Challenge as a kayaker, so perhaps we'll meet on the Erie Canal!
Sincerely,
Lisa Saunders, Canalway Challenge Ambassador and author of Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV
LisaSaunders42@gmail.com

Upcoming presentations include:
Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer
Hear the story of Canalway Challenge Ambassador, Lisa Saunders, who walked the entire trail from Buffalo to Albany, to bring attention to a worthy cause (congenital CMV), and to solve the mystery of her great aunt's tragic death. Lisa is the author of several books, including, Walking the Erie Canalway Trail and Mystic Seafarer's Trail.

Weds, Sept 17, 2025, Noon, Baldwinsville Rotary Club, The Wood on Canton St., Baldwinsville

March 3, 2026, 6:30pm, Beauchamp Historical Club, Van Buren Town Hall (Baldwinsville, NY)
Saturday. June 20, 2026 1-3pm, Clay Historical Association.

BIO: Lisa Saunders of Baldwinsville is a Canalway Challenge Ambassador, an "end-to-ender," having walked 360 miles between Buffalo and Albany, is an interviewer for PAC-B TV and in addition to "Walking the Erie Canalway Trail," she is the author of several books, such as "Mystic Seafarer's Trail," which features her defeat as a sailor when she abandoned ship.

Lisa said, "I am am also a descendant of Jacob Leach, a Canal engineer who was on the planning committee when the boat parade came through Lyons 200 years ago!

"Jacob Leach (1777-1853), one of the first shopkeepers in Lyons. He was a miller of flour, distiller of whiskey, a member of Humanity Lodge, and an engineer on the first and Expanded Erie Canal. Jacob had his first whiskey distillery on the same property as The H. G. Hotchkiss Essential Oil Museum, but on the banks of Ganargua Creek before it was moved because of canal construction.

"Jacob helped celebrate the opening of the original Erie Canal by welcoming Governor DeWitt Clinton, a passenger on the Seneca Chief, to Lyons. The boat parade “occurred Oct.26, 1825, at the time the two ends of the canal were united in Lockport, and the 'waters were let over the mountain range.' The unique feature of the celebration throughout the state was the transmission of the exact time by firing of cannon – 24 and 32 pounders – distributed along the canal eight miles apart, a total distance 365 miles from Lake Erie to the Hudson River." In Lyons, the "32 pounder, one of the cannon in the chain across the state, was stationed on ‘an eminence west of the village overlooking the canal.’ At sunrise a salute of eight guns was fired from this piece. After the gun had passed along this ‘grand salute from the east,’ a procession was formed which marched through the principal streets of the village to the ‘new brick meeting house’ where the exercises of the day were performed consisting of prayer, psalm singing and oration by G. H. Chapin"(“’Grip's’ Historical Souvenir of Lyons," 1904).

"Jacob's 10th and last child, Augustus (also my ancestor) was born during the famous Erie Canal 1825 boat parade and grew up to become an Erie Canal engineer. Work on the Enlarged Erie Canal began in 1835 with Jacob Leach as resident engineer in the region. Jacob built (with Robert Ennis) "the section extending west from Perrine's hill to the poorhouse lock [Lock 56]" (The Sisson Family of Lyons, NY, 2005, p. 233). Jacob Leach died in 1853 at the age of 75. He is buried at the Lyons Rural Cemetery."

Photo caption for the following images

Jim and Lisa Saunders pushing Mary Ann Avazian on the Erie Canalway Trail in DeWitt for a photo shoot for Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor. Photographs by Call of the Loon Productions.

NOTE TO: local parks, businesses, recreation departments and canal sites:

If you wish to promote the Canalway Challenge in your community, I can have the following supplies sent to you:

Outdoor banners (3' x 6'). Banners will arrive directly from the printer, rolled up in a tube.

Posters (11" x 17"). Usually mailed in a cardboard envelope so they don't get wrinkled.

Rack Cards

Trail Cards

Stickers

If you just want a flier size hanging for the wall, click here: Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor :Promotional Toolkit

Please give me your address where they should be sent, or contact:

Ashley Quimby-Simoni, Communications & Outreach Manager, Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor, at Ashley_Quimby-Simoni@eriecanalway.org (for my interview with Ashley, click on "Erie Canalway Challenge").

Media coverage of our 360-mile Challenge

Eagle Newsroom: “B’ville couple completes Erie Canalway Challenge: Saunders continue to spread CMV awareness” (Edwards, A., May 19,, 2025). (Print)
Eagle Newsroom: “This CMV Awareness Month, mother continues to share her story” (Edwards, A., June 19, 2024).
CNY Central: Baldwinsville mother applauds federal push to protect babies from CMV - CNY Central (Coleman, M.,March 8,2024).
The Citizen: “Bill in Congress aims to boost CMV newborn screening, research” (Robert Harding, Mar 8, 2024).
NBC3: Baldwinsville couple's advocacy inspires legislation for CMV awareness (Coleman, M., Nov. 30, 2023).
Eagle Newsroom: “Baldwinsville couple walking Erie Canal, raising awareness,”(Baldwinsville Messenger, print, Davis, J., Oct. 25, 2023).
Democrat and Chronicle and Lohud,: “New York begins screening newborns for CMV virus that causes birth defects. What to know” (Robinson, D., Oct. 4, 2023)
USA TODAY: This virus is a leading cause birth defects. Why isn't it screened more? (Eduardo Cuevas, 2023, print).
The Citizen: “NY to begin pilot CMV newborn screening program” (Harding, R. Sept. 28, 2023).
Public Access Channel Baldwinsville: The Path to CMV Prevention - 03/20/2023 (my 30-year cytomegalovirus journey and laws passed and hoped for).
The Post-Standard: "How a Baldwinsville mother fought for 30 years to pass a law that might have saved her daughter", Emma Vallelunga, Jan.1, 2023, Syracuse.com, Dec. 27, 2022 (Facebook).
CNYCentral.com:”Baldwinsville mom celebrates new law in daughter's name to protect pregnant women, babies,” Coleman, M., Dec.15, 2022 (Facebook).
The River Reporter: Viral alert: A silent virus that scars for life, Dec.13,2022
New York Family: “Elizabeth’s Law for CMV Education Passed in New York”, Kaitlyn Riggio, Dec. 8, 2022.
Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor: “Congratulations to Lisa Saunders, Author/TV Host and her husband, Jim, two Canalway Challengers who have walked half the length of the Erie Canal to raise awareness [of] the impacts of cytomegalovirus (CMV)” Dec. 6, 2022
The Citizen: “Our View: Elizabeth’s Law poised to help families avoid heartache,”The Citizen Editorial Board, Dec. 1, 2022
The Citizen: "Hochul signs 'Elizabeth's Law,' named for Auburn native's daughter, to raise CMV awareness", Robert Harding, Nov. 29, 2022.
Twi-Lights, “Trail Works Inc. Recognizes CMV Awareness on National Trails Day” Fall 2021, p.5-7, TRAIL WORKS, INC.
The Citizen: "NY lawmakers OK CMV awareness bill named in honor of CNY couple's daughter", Robert Harding, June 1, 2022.
Eagle Newsroom, "Baldwinsville couple advocates for 'Elizabeth's Law' to stop cytomegalovirus: Bill named in memory of their daughter," Dec. 14, 2021.
Spectrum News: "Couple pushes for law in memory of their daughter" (Houghtaling, J., Jul. 01, 2021). Includes an interview with Dr. Sunil Sood.
Finger Lakes Times, "Trail of Hope celebration in Lyons marks CMV Month in New York" (Buchiere, S., Jun 11, 2021).
Finger Lakes Times: "MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Couple brings awareness to threat to infant health: CMV", (Buchiere, S.,June 4, 2021).
The Citizen: "NY Senate passes bill, named for CNY couple's daughter, to boost CMV awareness", (Harding, R., June 2, 2021).
Syracuse Woman magazine, "Fighting CMV One Step at a Time (p.28)", (Vallelunga, E., May 2021)
The Citizen: "'Elizabeth's law,' named for CNY couple's daughter, would boost CMV awareness", (Harding, R., May 4,2021)

Walking 360 Miles to Complete Erie Canalway Challenge: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV

2025-05-05T04:32:00.000-07:00

I am a “Canalway Challenge Ambassador” and finally finished walking 360 miles to complete the Erie Canalway Challenge between Buffalo and Albany on April 23, 2025 -- just in time for the Erie Canal's Bicentennial!

Please see the following press release and photographs for more information.

Lisa Saunders

Baldwinsville, New York

LisaSaunders42@gmail.com

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Baby Boomers Walk 360 Miles to Complete Erie Canalway Challenge

Searched for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer on Way to Stop CMV--the #1 Birth Defects Virus That Claimed Daughter

In search of 7 wonders, bathrooms and beer, a Baldwinsville, New York, couple walked 360 miles between Buffalo and Albany on the Erie Canalway Trail, finishing in Albany on April 23, 2025, to raise awareness of congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV), a viral cause of autism and hearing loss. They registered their Canalway Challenge with the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor as "Lisa & Jim Saunders to Stop CMV, #1 Birth Defects Virus."

When the baby boomers commenced their journey, they assumed walking a mostly level path would be easy – but there were challenges! They've been chased by mosquitoes, biting flies, hissing geese and lightning. They endured torrential downpours, floods, ice, blinding snow, chafing underwear, and aching feet. Yet, they found ways to persevere, enjoying the beauty and engineering marvels along the way. Tackling different sections of the Trail about once a month, it took them five years to complete the Challenge.

Lisa's updated book, "Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV" includes her investigation into where and how her great Aunt Rebecca drove into the Canal over 80 years ago, supposedly to end her life, and how her ancestor Jacob Leach, a distiller of whiskey, helped plan the opening of the first Erie Canal by welcoming Governor Clinton and the Seneca Chief boat parade. Lisa also discusses the issues faced by modern, sedentary folks who seek to become "end-to-enders" -- those who walk, bike or kayak the entire Erie Canal -- and how she overcame them.

Congress established the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor in 2000 because the canal “facilitated the movement of ideas …like the abolition of slavery and…women's rights…across upstate New York to the rest of the country…” (106th Congress). Jim and Lisa were determined to become "end-to-enders" on the Erie Canalway Trail because they have a women's rights message to move from "upstate New York to the rest of the country" – that women have the right to know how to protect their pregnancies from congenital CMV. The couple left Stop CMV rocks, with prevention tips (CDC.gov/CMV), along the Trail to comply with Congress' recommendation that "more effort be taken to counsel women of childbearing age of the effect this virus can have on their children" (112th Congress, 2011).

The day after Jim and Lisa reached the "East End" Erie Canal mile marker in Albany, Lisa visited the Legislative Office Building to ask the Assembly Health Committee members to pass two new CMV bills (A3956 and A3074) that would ensure every newborn be tested for congenital CMV and be referred to specialists within the first critical days of life (for possible early interventions such as antivirals). In 2022, the New York governor had signed "Elizabeth's Law," named in memory of their daughter, to ensure that child care providers and pregnant women received educational materials on how to protect their pregnancies from CMV (for example, not kissing toddlers around the mouth or sharing food/drinks with them).

Though now an “end-to-ender,” Lisa can still be seen on the Trail as a “Canalway Challenge Ambassador,” handing out materials to encourage other Trail users to take the 1st, 15, 90, 180, 200, or 360-mile Challenge. Lisa appreciates the accessibility of the Trail and pushed her mother in a wheelchair so Mom could complete the One-Mile Canalway Challenge. Lisa can be seen on the Trail in videos, "Erie Canal Trail: Stop Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Birth Defects. Pass "Elizabeth's Law" (2022) and “Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders, Stop CMV” (PAC-B TV, 2023).

To reach Lisa Saunders about speaking to your group about her Erie Canalway Trail experiences and/or congenital CMV, email her at: LisaSaunders42@gmail.com. In addition to "Walking the Erie Canalway Trail," Lisa is the author of several books, such as "Mystic Seafarer's Trail," which features her defeat as a sailor when she abandoned ship.

For more information about the Canalway Challenge, visit: eriecanalway.org/explore/challenge and/or Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor :: FAQs.

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Lisa and Jim Saunders seen in their CMV T-shirts completing the 360-mile Canalway Challenge walk with their "Stop CMV" sign at the Erie Canal "East End" marker in Albany on April 23, 2025.

Lisa and Jim Saunders seen completing their 360-mile Canalway Challenge walk with their "end-to-ender" sign at the Erie Canal "East End" marker in Albany on April 23, 2025. (Two available photos included - one with and without the Canalway Challenge logo).

Stop CMV rock and New York State Capitol on April 24, 2025.

Stop CMV rock and New York State Legislative Office Building on April 24, 2025.

Lisa Saunders with Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal, sponsor of two 2025 cytomegalovirus bills: A3956 ("Requires cytomegalovirus screening for every newborn") and A3074 ("Requires reporting of positive cytomegalovirus results") on April 24, 2025.

Lisa Saunders at the New York State Capitol on April 24, 2025.

Lisa and Jim Saunders seen at the Erie Canal "West End" marker at Canalside, Buffalo.

Jim and Lisa Saunders pushing Lisa's mom, Mary Ann Avazian, on the Erie Canalway Trail in DeWitt, New York, for a photo shoot for Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor. Photographs by Call of the Loon Productions.

All Photo Captions:

Lisa and Jim Saunders seen in their CMV T-shirts completing the 360-mile Canalway Challenge walk with their "Stop CMV" sign at the Erie Canal "East End" marker in Albany on April 23, 2025.
Lisa and Jim Saunders seen completing their 360-mile Canalway Challenge walk with their "end-to-ender" sign at the Erie Canal "East End" marker in Albany on April 23, 2025. (Two available photos included - one with and without the Canalway Challenge logo).
Stop CMV rock and New York State Capitol on April 24, 2025.
Stop CMV rock and New York State Legislative Office Building on April 24, 2025.
Lisa Saunders with Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal, sponsor of two 2025 cytomegalovirus bills: A3956 ("Requires cytomegalovirus screening for every newborn") and A3074 ("Requires reporting of positive cytomegalovirus results") on April 24, 2025.
Lisa Saunders at the New York State Capitol on April 24, 2025.
Lisa and Jim Saunders seen at the Erie Canal "West End" marker at Canalside, Buffalo.
Jim and Lisa Saunders pushing Lisa's mom, Mary Ann Avazian, on the Erie Canalway Trail in DeWitt, New York, for a photo shoot for Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor. Photographs by Call of the Loon Productions.

Link to slide show, Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV

FYI, I fed some comments about our walk to ChatGBT. Although I forgot to mention the walk took five years, it did a remarkable job coming up with the following:

Lisa and Jim Saunders set out from Buffalo with backpacks, walking sticks, and a quiet promise to their daughter, Elizabeth. The Erie Canalway Trail stretched 350 miles ahead—toward Albany, toward healing, and toward anyone who might notice the “Stop CMV” rocks they planned to leave behind like breadcrumbs of hope.

Their legs hurt by mile twenty. By mile fifty, their feet were blistered mosaics. But every time one of them faltered, the other would point to the canal beside them—still, determined, purposeful—and they kept going.

They learned history from the trail itself: old lock walls etched with stubborn moss, weathered signs telling stories of barges and dreamers, and towns that had grown up around the waterway like loyal friends. Jim would read every plaque; Lisa would pretend to be impatient but secretly loved his enthusiasm.

Not every day was peaceful. A goose once came honking after them with the fury of a tiny feathered dragon. A dog chased them for half a mile, and they sprinted like teenagers who suddenly remembered their knees. Lightning cracked overhead more than once, and they were pelted with sleet so sideways and sharp it felt personal.

But at the end of each day, they placed another “Stop CMV” rock along the trail—bright, hand-painted, and full of Elizabeth’s memory. Sometimes they imagined hikers finding them weeks later, pausing long enough to read, to wonder, to care.

By the time they reached Albany, they were sore, weather-beaten, and absolutely exhausted. Yet they stood side by side at the trail’s end, hands clasped, laughing at how triumphant and ridiculous they looked.

They had walked across an entire state. But more importantly, they had walked together—carrying love, grief, history, and hope the whole way—leaving a trail of small stones that said, Elizabeth was here. And she still matters.

Thanksgiving in the Midst of a Divided Country

2024-12-19T04:05:00.000-08:00

(Lisa Saunders beside the Mayflower II in Plymouth, Mass.)

Just when I was in the midst of grumbling about the work of Thanksgiving, I was inspired by a local history talk in November 2024 on why President Lincoln proclaimed a "Day of National Thanksgiving". He and Secretary of State of Seward wanted to encourage national unity in the midst of the Civil War.

Before Lincoln was elected president, a speech of his became known for his paraphrasing of Jesus' comment when he said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand” (Matthew 12:25). It makes sense that Lincoln would sign the Thanksgiving proclamation written by Seward in 1863, which includes the following excerpt: "I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, …to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving... And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him …, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union." (For more on Lincoln, Seward and Thanksgiving, by Jeff Ludwig of Seward House, click on Facebook video.)

According to Psychology Today, there are "7 Scientifically Proven Benefits of Gratitude", which were summarized in the article's intro statements: "Gratitude reduces a multitude of toxic emotions, from envy and resentment to frustration and regret. Writing in a gratitude journal improves sleep, according to one study."

Since I'm always trying to get cytomegalovirus (CMV) laws passed to help protect unborn children from a leading cause of birth defects, I try to remember to be thankful for all our leaders -- so they will work together! “I urge...that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness” (I Timothy 2:1-2).

If you've never had a chance to visit Plymouth, Massachusetts, the site of the first Thanksgiving, I highly recommend it. Despite half the 102 Mayflower passengers dying their first winter (1620-1621) in Plymouth over 400 years ago, it is estimated that 10 million people in the U.S. descend from a Mayflower passenger -- and most don't even know it!

My Mayflower ancestor was Richard Warren, one of the half who survived the first winter (many died from scurvy). The Mayflower passengers disembarked too late in the year to build suitable homes and gather food. (Richard Warren’s wife, Elizabeth, and daughters were still in England and came over a few years later). When Richard passed away eight years after landing on “Plymouth Rock” in 1628, it was said of him that he “was a useful instrument; and during his life bore a deep share in the difficulties and troubles of the first settlement of the plantation of New Plymouth”(Pilgrim Hall Museum). I hope it's not said of me that I always complain about the work of a Thanksgiving meal!

For those who like history, the following are some details behind the first Thanksgiving: In March 1621, Massasoit, king or sachem of the Wampanoag Indians, visited Plymouth. Massasoit believed there would be value in having a thriving trade between the two peoples and he also wanted to secure the English as allies against the Narragansetts. That fall of 1621, the first Thanksgiving was celebrated. Richard Warren and the other Mayflower passengers feasted with the Wampanoag Indians to celebrate the colony's first successful harvest. Edward Winslow wrote to a friend: “Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain and others.”

This year, I am very thankful I don't have to kill any deer and put on a big spread -- we are eating with family at Sherwood Inn in Skaneateles. Yea! I hope you also find things to be thankful for this holiday season!

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God" (Philippians 4:6).

Vote on "8th Wonder of the Erie Canalway Trail" by 12/31/24. See all 7

2024-11-09T05:42:00.000-08:00

NOTE: From December 23 - 26, 2024, I've made my book, "Walking Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV," available as a free ebook. Read sample: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DR7BF6HH

In 2025, New York State will celebrate the bicentennial of the Erie Canal. Help decide the best sites on the 360-mile Erie Canalway Trail between Albany and Buffalo (seen above at Canalside).

by Lisa Saunders

My husband, Jim, and I have walked over 95% of the way across New York State on the 360-mile Erie Canalway Trail between Albany and Buffalo. After seeing many intriguing sites along the way, we’ve declared the “7 Wonders of the Erie Canal Trail.”

Can you help us declare the 8th Wonder of the Trail in time to celebrate the Canal’s bicentennial in 2025? The 8th Wonder will be included in my upcoming book, “Walking the 360-Mile Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer.”

We believe the following are the “7 Wonders of the Erie Canal”:

“Flight of Five”: The c. 1862 “staircase” locks are seen alongside two deep, consecutive modern locks (34 & 35), Lockport.
1850 Syracuse Weighlock Building, last remaining structure of its kind (houses Erie Canal Museum), Syracuse.
Lift Lock 17, "One of the highest lift locks in the world," Little Falls.
Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct, only restored, navigable aqueduct, Camillus.
Historic dry dock complex in Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum, Chittenango.
Tiny Locktender’s House, Jordan (Joran Historical Society & Museum)
Mural Mania: "longest mural trail in the world of over 85 miles along the Erie Canal.”

Please vote on the 8th Wonder of the Erie Canalway Trail from the following:

"Upside-Down Bridge", Lockport. A railroad bridge with the truss upside-down.
Lift Bridges (there are 15, but the Fairport Lift Bridge is unique–it's an irregular decagon).
Movable Dams (there are eight - not sure which should be a contender).

We walk new sections of the Trail about once a month - in all kinds of weather. Walking a level path may sound easy, but it isn't always! We've been chased by mosquitoes, biting flies, hissing geese and lightning. We've endured torrential downpours, blinding snow, chafing underwear, aching feet and swollen knees. We’ve faced snakes, floods, ice, angry dogs, and a smelly, dead opossum! (But in Buffalo, we enjoyed the sweet aroma of General Mills - we guess it was Lucky Charms.) My video, "Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders, Stop CMV", covers the history of the Canal and the challenges faced to become "end-to-enders" – those who walk, bike or kayak the entire Erie Canal. (My video, available on PAC-B TV YouTube channel, also covers why my great-great Aunt Rebecca drove into the Canal over 80 years ago, ending her life.)

Congress established the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor in 2000 because the canal “facilitated the movement of ideas …like the abolition of slavery and…women's rights…across upstate New York to the rest of the country…” (106th Congress). Jim and I are determined to become "end-to-enders" because we also have a "women's rights" issue to move from "upstate New York to the rest of the country" - cytomegalovirus (CMV). We are leaving Stop CMV rocks along the Trail to comply with Congress' recommendation that “more effort be taken to counsel women of childbearing age of the effect this virus can have on their children” (112th Congress, 2011). This year, Congressman Mike Lawler (R-NY-17) and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) introduced the Stop CMV Act of 2024 (H.R. 7542).

To help us decide on the”8th Wonder of the Erie Canalway Trail,” send me an email at: LisaSauders42@gmail.com or Vote in comments.

See you on the Trail – wheelchairs are welcome!

(Jim and Lisa Saunders pushing Lisa's mom, Mary Ann Avazian, on the Erie Canalway Trail in DeWitt, New York, for a photo shoot for Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor. Photographs by Call of the Loon Productions.)

"Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls" (Jeremiah 6:16).

(Buffalo Harbor State Park: End of the Empire State Trail and Erie Canalway Trail.)

Hiking the Erie Canal Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer - and an End to CMV

2023-08-23T05:16:00.015-07:00

My new travel video, "Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders..." provides a brief history of the historic and active Erie Canals, what it's like for baby boomers to walk, rather than bike, the entire Erie Canalway Trail, and why and how we are persevering. (As of 3/13/24, we have walked more than 71% of the Trail - 254 / 360 miles).

Watch video on PAC-B TV or YouTube: https://youtu.be/kbLp-lBz96U?si=D6pt_wEn77JC4aCg

I would love to get the public involved in voting or commenting on which of the 11 Canalway "wonders" featured in the video should make the final list, "The 7 Wonders of the Erie Canalway Trail" (vote/comment in the YouTube link). Of course, folks may have more contenders to suggest before I finish my travel memoir on our adventure, which I plan to do, before the end of the Erie Canal's “bicentennial period” of 2017-2025.

If you would like me to present to your group, please let me know.

Below my signature is more information about the video (including the 11 "Wonders" found so far), helpful "Towpath Traveler" guides, images, and some media coverage about our quest.

Sincerely,

Lisa Saunders
AuthorLisaSaunders.com
LisaSaunders42@gmail.com
Amazon author page

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer

Challenges faced by baby boomers, how we're overcoming them - and why

We're over halfway there!

by Lisa Saunders

Baldwinsville, New York--Although most people bicycle across the State of New York on the 360-mile Erie Canalway Trail, my husband Jim and I are walking it. Since commencing our quest in 2020, we have walked over halfway across the state (254 miles so far) by tackling new sections of the Trail about twice a month - in all kinds of weather. We've been chased by swarms of mosquitoes, biting flies and lightning. We've endured torrential downpours, blinding snow, chafing underwear, aching feet and swollen knees. We’ve faced snakes, floods, ice, and a smelly, dead opossum!

My video, "Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders, Stop CMV", now airing on Baldwinsville's Public Access Channel, features the history of the Erie Canal and challenges faced by baby boomers seeking to become "end-to-enders" - those who walk, bike or kayak the entire Erie Canal. It includes my investigation into how (and why) my great-great Aunt Rebecca drove into the Canal over 80 years ago, ending her life.

The video showcases the reasons the Canal was considered the "8th Wonder of the World" and its ability to unite a nation. Congress established the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor in 2000 because the canal “facilitated the movement of ideas …like the abolition of slavery and…women's rights…across upstate New York to the rest of the country…” (Congressional Bills 106th Congress). Jim and I are determined to become "end-to-enders" because we have a "women's rights" issue to move from "upstate New York to the rest of the country" - cytomegalovirus (CMV). We are leaving #Stop CMV rocks along the Trail to comply with Congress' recommendation that "more effort be taken to counsel women of childbearing age of the effect this virus can have on their children" (S.Res.215 — 112th Congress, 2011).

Our daughter Elizabeth was born with brain damage in 1989 because I contracted CMV just prior to or during my pregnancy. I might have prevented that had I known to lessen my "risk of getting CMV by reducing contact with saliva and urine from babies and young children...not sharing food, utensils, or cups with a child" (CDC.gov/CMV). In 2022, “Elizabeth’s Law,” named in memory of our daughter, was passed in New York. It requires the provision of CMV educational materials to child care providers and pregnant women. But there is still a lot to do to raise awareness, so we keep putting one foot in front of the other.

The 200th Anniversary of the Erie Canal is being celebrated during the “bicentennial period” of 2017-2025. If we push harder, maybe we can finish our 360-mile Challenge in 2025 - exactly 200 years after the Canal was completed. As Jim and I continue our journey across New York, we're collecting contenders for "The 7 Wonders of the Erie Canalway Trail," which will be included in my upcoming book.

You are welcome to send in your vote on which of the following "Wonder" contenders discussed in the video, "Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders, Stop CMV", should be declared "The 7 Wonders" (do so in YouTube comments). If you have another site that should be considered, please let me know!

“Flight of Five”: The c. 1862 “staircase” locks are seen alongside two deep, consecutive modern locks (34 & 35), Lockport.
1850 Syracuse Weighlock Building, last remaining structure of its kind (houses Erie Canal Museum).
Lift Lock 17, "One of the highest lift locks in the world," Little Falls.
Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct, only restored, navigable aqueduct in New York, Camillus.
Lift Bridges (there are 15, but the Fairport Lift Bridge, an irregular decagon, is the contender).
Movable Dams (there are eight - not sure which one should be a contender).
Richmond Aqueduct, Montezuma Heritage Park (though on the active Erie Canal, a slight detour is needed from the Canalway Trail to see it).
Drydocks (the active Lyons Drydock or the historic dry dock complex in Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum).
"Upside-Down Bridge", Lockport. A railroad bridge with the truss upside-down.
Tiny Locktender’s House, Jordan.
Mural Mania: "longest mural trail in the world of over 85 miles along the Erie Canal.”

Email me at LisaSaunders42@gmail.com with "Wonder" preferences or to present to your group. For more information about my work: www.authorlisasaunders.com.

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Photo caption: Jim and Lisa Saunders pushing Mary Ann Avazian on the Erie Canalway Trail in DeWitt for a photo shoot for Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor. Photographs by Call of the Loon Productions.

Photo caption: Jim and Lisa Saunders at Camillus Erie Canal Park. Photo by Jim Saunders.

Media coverage of the purpose of our walk

Spectrum News: "Couple pushes for law in memory of their daughter" (Houghtaling, J., Jul. 01, 2021).

Finger Lakes Times: "MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Couple brings awareness to threat to infant health: CMV", (Buchiere, S.,June 4, 2021).

Syracuse Woman magazine, "Fighting CMV One Step at a Time (p.28)", (Vallelunga, E., May 2021) 

The Citizen, "Challenge for Change: Walking across NY to raise awareness of CMV", (Wilcox, D., Mar 31, 2021)

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Helpful “Towpath Traveler” Guides

Maps: online and paper (helpful for parking, restaurants, lodging, historical sites, etc.):

Empire State Trail (provides descriptions of the Trail by sections, parking addresses, etc.).
Cycle the Erie Canal (interactive online map and/or print map ordering info).
NYS Canalway Water Trail Guidebook and Map Set (detailed maps - order or download).
The Erie Canal Bike Trail of New York (info on towns and lodging along the way).
Erie Canal Mapping Project (shows all three versions of the Canal).
Google Maps shows the Trail.
New York State Canal Corporation (good overall info for boaters and walkers/cyclists such as camping along the Canalway Trail).

Folks on these Facebook sites have been helpful:

About CMV:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): “CMV is the most common infectious cause of birth defects in the United States. About 1 out of 200 babies is born with congenital CMV. One out of 5 babies with congenital CMV will have symptoms or long-term health problems, such as hearing loss” (cdc.gov/cmv). “You may be able to lessen your risk of getting CMV by reducing contact with saliva and urine from babies and young children...You can avoid getting a child’s saliva in your mouth by, for example, not sharing food, utensils, or cups with a child” (CMV Fact Sheet for Pregnant Women and Parents or CMV pdf).

National CMV Foundation at:https://www.nationalcmv.org/

Other:

Access Lisa's slides: “Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders. Benches, Bathrooms and Beer on Way to Stop CMV.”
One-minute video: “Erie Canal Trail: Stop Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Birth Defects. Pass "Elizabeth's Law"

Little Falls: Erie Canalway Trail, April 2023

2023-05-01T14:24:00.001-07:00

Little Falls: Erie Canalway Trail, April 2023

2023-05-01T14:10:00.000-07:00

Amsterdam

2023-04-29T14:19:00.000-07:00

Lisa Saunders

HELP ME SOLVE AUNT REBECCA'S DEATH MYSTERY--Suicide or Murder?

2023-01-28T05:04:00.004-08:00

Aunt Rebecca. Probably taken in the 1930s.

An Erie Canal Mystery: Aunt Rebecca's Death: Suicide, Murder or Accident?

Rebecca C. Whyland of Hamlin (Brockport) went missing on a Sat., Nov. 8, 1941 (just weeks prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor) and was found in her coup the following Wednesday - underwater in the Erie Canal

As yet, I have not seen the 80-year-old coroner's report on my Aunt Rebecca. I woud like to know why the coroner determined she died "by suicide while temporarily insane." How did he know she wasn't murdered and driven into the canal or that she wasn't the victim of a hit-and-run?

Aunt Rebecca went missing on a Saturday, Nov. 8, 1941, and was found underwater the following Wednesday. My local librarian helped me find clues, like the Brockport newspaper article headlined, HAMLIN LADY FOUND DEAD IN SUNKEN AUTOMOBILE, stating: "A 37-year-old Hamlin woman, Mrs. Rebecca Whyland, who had been missing from her home in the Chase Road since Saturday was found dead in her automobile, which was located at the bottom of the Barge canal, last night, between the Lake road and Sweden-Walker road, about two miles east of this village. Lester Whyland, her husband, reported to Sheriff Skinner that she left home, Saturday, on a shopping trip and when she did not return, that evening, he reported her missing. Following a "hunch," Mrs. Whyland's brother-in-law, Ray Conley of Hilton searched along the Canal bank until he noticed tire marks going into the Canal. The sheriffs office was notified and for an hour a boat hook was used along the bottom of the canal. Finally, it struck the car in the center and a tow truck was called. When the car was raised, Mrs. Whyland's body was found jammed under the steering wheel and the top of the automobile was crashed as though hit by passing barges. The body was taken to the morgue where an autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death. In an effort to clear up the case, Sheriff Skinner stated that he would continue his conversations with Mr. Whyland and Mr. Conley today.."

A week later, on November 20, the newspaper reported the following: Coroner Issues Suicide Verdict Funeral Held Saturday Coroner Davide H. Atwater, after a thorough investigation, listed Friday, the death of Mrs. Rebecca Whyland of Chase road, Hamlin, who was found Nov. 12 in her car at the bottom of the Barge canal, as "by suicide while temporarily insane." Besides her husband, Lester, Mrs. Whyland is survived by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Chamberlain; two sisters, Mrs. Wilbur VanDorn and Mrs Harold Brown; two brothers, Arthur of Rochester and Irving of Hilton; and several nieces and nephews. Funeral services were conducted from her late home, Saturday, afternoon at 2 o'clock. Internment took place in Parma Union cemetery.

Wouldn't a barge have reported that they hit an object in the canal? My local librarian told me the stretch of road she was reported to have driven in from: “Lake Road is called Main Street in Brockport and Sweden-Walker Road runs parallel to Main (Lake) Street. The road that follows the canal is called East Canal Road. I've driven it and it's very picturesque with no guardrails or anything to stop a car from running off the road. That stretch is about four miles,” said Jacquie Owens, Adult Services Librarian, Baldwinsville Public Library. Owens questions Rebecca's suicide verdict along with me and hopes that as a family member, I may be able to get a copy of the coroner's report (see note below). She says, "In the back of my mind, I did a double take when I saw the suicide by reason of temporary insanity. What was the reason for the insanity? Was there any evidence that she was acting strangely or did the coroner just assume she was because it looked like a suicide? Also, they said that the car was crushed as if a barge passed over it. Didn't the barge, if there was one, think to report the scraping, especially since it damaged the boat? And did a barge even pass by between the time she went in and the time she was pulled out?"

I uploaded the above articles and my photograph of her on Find a Grave at: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/153574329/rebecca-c.-whyland

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Notes: Monroe County's Office of the Medical Examiner offers the ability to get coroner's reports if you are entitled to it. The hours for record information requests are Monday through Friday (10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.). Autopsy Authorization Request: include a $40 check or money order payable to Monroe County, and send to Office of Medical Examiner, 740 East Henrietta Road, Rochester, NY 14623" https://www.monroecounty.gov/health-medicalexaminer#Archival. The New York State Archives may be an easier way to get a hold of the report.

My husband Jim wants to know if she was wearing the "yellow diamond" ring when her body was found. According to my cousin Laura, her family feared there may have been a curse around it as two of our family members who owned it died at age 37. Prior to Aunt Rebecca, my great-grandmother Alice Lee owned the ring and died from leukemia at 37. Prior to her, my uncle Frank owned it and hung himself (he was in his 20s--but I think he shot himself). According to Cousin Laura, Uncle Frank "bought it and proposed to a lady who turned him down. He was so distraught and depressed that he hung himself in the barn." (My Cousin Laura's family sold the "yellow diamond" ring in a Tiffany setting and learned that it was actually a yellow sapphire.)

I'm also looking into the 1826 case of the missing, probably murdered Freemason William Morgan who was trying to publish a book exposing Freemasonry's secrets. The "Morgan Murder" caused division in my 19th century family who lived along the Canal per a letter I recently read from my 4th great-grandfather, banker William Sisson of Lyons (a Freemason), to his brother-in-law, my distant uncle, Justus Gale, of Rochester, who supported the Anti-Mason movement.

If you have any Erie Canal stories or tips on how to solve old "Cold Cases", please let me know as I'm currently working on a new book, “Walking the Erie Canal Trail: Secrets of the 8th Wonder of the World, CMV and Pandemic Pizza".

Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders. Benches, Bathrooms and Beer on Way to Stop CMV

2022-11-27T05:59:00.001-08:00

Jim and Lisa Saunders of Baldwinsville, New York, are hiking the 360-mile Erie Canalway Trail Challenge and are over halfway there! They leave #Stop CMV rocks along the way to raise awareness of the leading viral cause of birth defects, cytomegalovirus. (Jim and Lisa on the Erie Canalway Trail in Amsterdam, New York, in November 2022. Photo by Lawrence Chester.)

Updated 8/23//23:

Why Walk Across New York State on the 360-Mile Erie Canalway Trail

Challenges faced by baby boomers Jim and Lisa Saunders and how they've overcome--they are over halfway there!

Jim and Lisa Saunders of Baldwinsville are hiking across New York State on the Erie Canalway Trail between Albany and Buffalo. Beginning the 360-mile Canalway Challenge in April 2020 at its midpoint, Camillus, they have since walked over halfway across the State (226 miles). They tackle a new section of the Trail about twice a month - in all seasons. Despite the challenges they've faced the last three years, becoming an "end-to-ender" (those who walk, bike or kayak the Erie Canal) continues to be their goal.

Lisa says, “Although walking a level path sounds easy, it isn't always! We've been chased by swarms of mosquitoes and biting flies. We've endured lightning, torrential downpours, blinding snow, chafing underwear, aching feet, and swollen knees . We’ve faced snakes, floods, ice, and a smelly, dead opossum!”

To learn more about the Erie Canalway Trail, how to overcome its challenges, and "join" Jim and Lisa as they search for "The 7 Wonders," benches, bathrooms and beer, click on Lisa's slide show, “Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders. Benches, Bathrooms and Beer on Way to Stop CMV.”

Congress established the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor in 2000 because the canal “facilitated the movement of ideas …like the abolition of slavery and…women's rights…across upstate New York to the rest of the country…” (govinfo.gov). Lisa and Jim are determined to become "end-to-enders" because they have a "women's rights" issue to move from "upstate New York to the rest of the country": cytomegalovirus (CMV). Jim and Lisa are leaving #Stop CMV rocks along the Trail to comply with Congress' recommendation that “more effort be taken to counsel women of childbearing age of the effect this virus can have on their children” (Congress designated June as National Cytomegalovirus Awareness Month in 2011).

Lisa says, “Our daughter Elizabeth was born with brain damage because I contracted CMV just prior to or during my pregnancy. If I had been educated about CMV prevention, she might have had a healthy life.” Elizabeth died at the age of 16 in 2006 during a seizure.

According to the CDC, “CMV is the most common infectious cause of birth defects in the United States. About 1 out of 200 babies is born with congenital CMV. One out of 5 babies with congenital CMV will have symptoms or long-term health problems, such as hearing loss” (cdc.gov/cmv). For women of childbearing age to prevent CMV infection, the CDC states: “You may be able to lessen your risk of getting CMV by reducing contact with saliva and urine from babies and young children. The saliva and urine of children with CMV have high amounts of the virus. You can avoid getting a child’s saliva in your mouth by, for example, not sharing food, utensils, or cups with a child.” (CMV Fact Sheet for Pregnant Women and Parents or CMV pdf).

In 2022, “Elizabeth’s Law,” named in memory of Jim and Lisa’s daughter, was passed in New York it requires the provision of CMV educational materials to child care providers and pregnant women. Although delighted the law passed, Lisa says there is still a lot to be done: “I want all women across the U.S. to know about CMV before getting pregnant. In addition, all newborns should be tested for CMV to identify those who would benefit from early intervention and/or antiviral treatment.

To learn more about CMV, click on Lisa’s video, “Erie Canal Trail: Stop Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Birth Defects. Pass "Elizabeth's Law"; or visit the National CMV Foundation.

Contact Lisa Saunders at LisaSaunders42@gmail.com.

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Oder version of our story:

"We have walked half way across upstate New York on the Erie Canalway Trail for the Canalway Challenge. How and why we are doing it!"

by Lisa Saunders

Most 360-mile Erie Canalway Challenge rs bike or paddle the Trail, which takes about a week if they don't double back to their cars. To walk the Trail straight through, averaging 12 miles a day, would take a month. Jim and I can’t dedicate large chunks of time to the Challenge, and can only walk about six miles in a day. So far, we have averaged six miles a month, but I'm excited to announce we are finally halfway there!

We love analyzing the ruins and ditches along our route as we look for clues to the past. My 3rd great-grandfather Augustus M. Leach of Lyons, an engineer on the Canal, was said to have patented a drop gate--can any of his designs be found in the ruins? Also, will I ever find out why my Aunt Rebecca’s body was found in her coup submerged in the Canal in 1941?

When putting our feet up at the end of the day, Jim and I discuss what we still consider the “Seven Wonders of the Erie Canal” to be– should they include the crumbling aqueduct arches and overgrown locks of the Old Canal, or the movable dams and dramatically deep locks of the modern Canal? The Canal itself was once considered the "8th Wonder of the World", so it's been fascinating to learn why as we read the signage along the way. (Clicking on the Erie Canal Mapping Project makes it possible to know which version of the three Erie Canals you are walking along - Old Erie Canal (1825), Enlarged Erie Canal (1862), and/or the modern Barge Canal).

It’s taken us two and half years to walk between Rochester and Herkimer. We began the Challenge at the center of the Trail, Camillus Erie Canal Park, near our home in Baldwinsville on the modern Erie Canal, in April 2020. As of November 2022, have walked 189 miles - 53% across the State of New York.

Although walking the straight, smooth Erie Canalway Trail sounds easy, it isn’t always--especially if we ignore the weather! We've been chased by swarms of mosquitoes, biting flies, lightning, torrential downpours and blinding snow. We’ve confronted snakes, floods, ice, chafing underwear, aching feet, swollen knees, loud gunshots and a dead possum. And of course there is my constant worry - will I find a bathroom in time?

In warm weather, we pack sunscreen, bug spray, extra socks and even shoes when we suspect there may be flooding ahead. In the winter, we pack ice cleats, snow shoes and walking sticks to manage snow or sheets of ice.

This one-minute video about our quest, Erie Canal Trail: Stop Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Birth Defects. Pass "Elizabeth's Law", shows you why we are preserving. But if you want to learn more about what walkers experience across the the Trail, I suggest reading this couple's blog about their 26-day, one way hike: Bellingham W a lks. While they walked 15-20 miles a day (with some break days), they did occasionally take auto rides to avoid some busy, on-road stretches. Unlike that couple, however, we are not able to walk more than six miles a day with our undependable knees and feet, and we usually have to trudge back to our car (more aching feet!). I suggest watching this man walk while he shares an honest look at all that can go wrong (including a romantic breakup!) in "The Erie Canal - On Foot". This walker has also biked and kayaked the Trail: Triple End-To-End: Talking about the trip and planning.

If you are like us and can't walk the entire Trail on consecutive days, then read below my signature for tips on parking, food, bathrooms and lodging. If you realize this 360- mile Challenge is not for you, there are smaller Challenges you can set and still get a certificate and other Canalway stuff! My mother, a great-grandma, completed the “one-mile” Challenge by having us push her wheelchair on a paved portion of the Trail. Create a free account with Canalway Challenge, which provides a convenient way to log miles and space for notes (such as where parked, stopped and started). Visit: https://eriecanalway.org/explore/challenge)

One question posed to me included: "Was a lot of your trek on the trail with direct views to the canal or on the road?" So far, we have mostly walked along the modern or old canal, so yes, we see a lot of flowing river or stagnant, Old Erie Canal water with ducks, turtles, blue herons, and an occasional old tire thrown in. Some of the Trail is on the road and not an old tow path, so we also experience trucks whizzing by.

The Empire State Trail map has good descriptions of the Trail broken up into digestible segments, including the recently completed 15-mile portion through Syracuse, near our home. When we learned about the new Trail a few winters ago, we strapped on ice cleats, grabbed our walking sticks, and trekked through the snow and ice from Reed Webster Park, Camillus, through downtown Syracuse, then to Old Erie Canal State Historic Park, DeWitt. Along the way, we found the ruins of Lock 50, known as Gere's Lock; the New York State Fair Grounds and Crucible Steel, where we heard loud mechanical thumping reminiscent of the Morlocks in the “Time Machine”; watched bald eagles feeding at Onondaga Lake; saw the largest shopping mall in the state, Destiny USA; learned Syracuse's salt mining industry from signs lining the connected Onondaga Creekwalk; watched ice skaters at Clinton Square and looked down on carefully preserved Old Erie Canal ruins nearby; headed to the Erie Canal Museum, housed in the only surviving Weighlock building (which I consider an Erie Canal "Wonder"); strolled directly down the center of busy Erie Boulevard, once the Erie Canal itself, trying to imagine barges floating by the dollar stores; then onto Towpath Road alongside the Old Erie Canal, over the highway (481) with its dramatic overhead view of Butternut Creek Aqueduct ruins in DeWitt. From there, the Trail heads to Rome--where construction began on the Erie Canal over 200 years ago on July 4, 1817.

One question not posed to me, but that should have been: “What would make your quest easier?” Answer: Having folks meet us on the Trail so we could shuttle with two cars and not have to double back! I smiled at the article, "A Hiker’s Guide to Car Shuttles," which includes this option: “Sweet-talk your loved ones: Convince your family or friends to drop you off and pick you up. Coerce them with promises of mountain views, good company, and half your post-hike pizza.” This has only worked for us twice so far. Although our post-hike pizza is always good, our company must not be! Eventually, we may just have to get comfortable using the new fangled way of motoring one way- Uber.

Jim, a retired Pfizer scientist, and I have a super good reason for pressing forward despite the obstacles on the Trail: We are trying to raise awareness of another “C-virus” plaguing the country, hoping to educate pregnant women on how to prevent congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV). Congenital CMV, the leading viral cause of birth defects, impacted our daughter Elizabeth's brain until her death at age 16 in 2006 during a seizure. According to the CDC, "About one out of every 200 babies is born with congenital CMV infection. About one in five babies with congenital CMV infection will have long-term health problems". Pregnant women who have or care for toddlers are at greater risk for contracting the virus. As we walk along the Trail, we are placing #Stop CMV rocks painted by Tabitha Rodenhaus of Buffalo, the mother of Kaia born with congenital CMV in 2016. On November, 28, 2022, the New York governor signed into law a CMV bill named in memory of our daughter's - "Elizabeth's Law" (A7560B/S6287C). It requires information be given to child care providers and women at their first prenatal visit. Next we will work on a law to get all newborns (not just those who fail their hearing screen) tested for CMV so they can receive early intervention ( to get involved, contact Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal's office at: 518.455.5802 or Nick Guile, Legislative Director at guilen@nyassembly.gov).

To help us decide on the 7 Wonders of the Erie Canalway Trail (and vote on an 8th Wonder), send me an email. Some of our images and insights into the Trail are at: authorlisasaunders.blogspot.com.

See you on the Trail--wheelchairs are welcome!

Walk the straight path!

Sincerely,

Lisa Saunders

TAKING THE CHALLENGE IN SEGMENTS

As a clumsy kid, I was the last picked for school sports, and throughout my adult life, have dropped out of numerous exercise and dance classes - but I can put one foot in front of the other! A benefit of taking on the Canalway Challenge in segments is that we never have to guess what to do when stealing away from family responsibilities. And, because we always have a car, we see the local sites before or after a walk. Before each trek, we have to decide whether or not to drive two cars, to get a hotel, or to brace ourselves for a long day of walking and driving. The Challenge is getting more "challenging" as the drive east or west to our next starting point is getting further away. As of today, we are having to drive almost an hour and a half one way to get to our next starting point.

Maps
I use the following online maps to plan each segment of our walk as each provides valuable information on parking, restaurants and lodging (warning: they are not always up to date):

Empire State Trail: empiretrail.ny.gov/ (click on maps then on the portion, "Erie Canalway Trail")
Cycle the Erie Canal: www.ptny.org/cycle-the-erie-canal/trail-map
Google Maps (it shows the Erie Canalway Trail - though not up to date - with a green line): www.google.com/maps. If you are looking for walking directions, plug in that you are a biker, rather than a walker, and it will usually suggest/show you the Trail. Click on this G oogle Map bike route between Buffalo Harbor State Park and Jennings Landing, Albany.
The Erie Canal Bike Trail of New York (useful info about each town along the way): bikeeriecanal.com/
Canal Corporation (more useful to paddlers who need to follow the modern Erie Canal, but the eastern and western portions of the Trail often follow the modern Canal): www.canals.ny.gov/maps/

Parking
Finding parking places between manageable walking distances has been a real challenge since we only want to walk about six miles. The Erie Canalway Trail offers a lot of parking along the way, but there aren’t enough for us. We carefully analyze Google maps for off-road spaces large enough for a car. Sometimes we are lucky and see a circled P on the online maps, but we often have to ask business owners if we can park in their lot (I've given some a #Stop CMV rocks as a thank you). We put a sign on our dashboard stating our quest and include our phone numbers in case we've irritated a property owner or highway department.

Bench availability
Jim and I like to sit every couple of miles and have found it's best if we carry our own seats since we can't always depend on finding one. Jim wears a backpack that turns into a stool (from Dick's Sporting Goods) and I bought a light folding stool at a garage sale that clips to my knapsack.

How long to complete each section of your trek?
It takes us about 20 minutes to walk one mile, then another 20 minutes to walk back to the car--it takes longer the more weary we are. We seem to average 2,000-2,500 steps per mile.

What cities/towns did you start and stop in?
We start and stop in any town with a bathroom, restaurant or brewery. This map provides very helpful information on the towns along the way: bikeeriecanal.com

How to find the next bathroom
Learn to use the woods. I carry special, forest-friendly toilet paper sold to hunters (in fact, a hunter bought it for me!). For a time, I even resorted to wearing women's diapers (just in case), but the elastic chaffs on long walks.

Restaurants
I check Google maps and Maps on my iPhone for food nearby.

Weather

Although I recommend walking the Trail in fair weather, we walk in whatever weather comes our way. That hasn't always been wise! Walking in a recent rain meant we were chased by swarms of mosquitoes. We've also been chased by lightning, torrential downpours, flooding and a blinding snow.

Where exactly does the Trail begin/end in Albany and Buffalo?
I haven't seen the end/start points, and some have said the exact spots are hard to find. But, this is what I believe to be true after asking around:
Buffalo:
According to the Empire state Trail, the Trail starts at "Buffalo Harbor State Park on the shore of Lake Erie, where there is ample free parking, visitor services, and a formal “Gateway” marking the beginning/end of the Empire State Trail." Someone on Facebook posted: "Buffalo has mile 0 mile marker on the fence on Marine Drive between Commercial and Lloyd streets at the foot of the naval and military park."
Buffalo Harbor State Park: 1111 Fuhrmann Boulevard, Buffalo, NY 14203
https://bikeeriecanal.com/buffalo.aspx

Albany:
Jennings Landing, 1 Quay St, Albany, NY 12207
https://bikeeriecanal.com/corning-city-preserve-albany.aspx

Join the Erie Canal Community
I get a lot of my questions answered from folks on the following Facebook sites:

Folks we've met along the way

We have met several interesting Erie Canal fans through our quest including doctors interested in our #Stop CMV rocks. Jim and I were intrigued by the murals of historic Canal life along the way so I contacted the president of Mural Mania, Mark De Cracker, who then included the images of my Erie Canal engineer ancestors in the next mural in Lyons and even let me help paint it! You can watch us paint and learn more about the Trail and the murals on the Travels with Darley Show at: https://journy.tv/watch/travels-with-darley/new-yorks-empire-state-trail/. To learn more about the murals specifically, go to about 11:45 minutes into the video.

I've interviewed Mark of Mural Mania and others about the Canal for Baldwinsville's public access channel, PAC-B TV:

Mural Mania Episode 1: With Lisa Saunders & Mark De Cracker (Mark presented slides of murals and the stories behind them, in the Erie Canal towns of Newark, Lyons, Clyde and Savannah)
Kayaking the Erie Canal by David Ellingson
Wildlife in Baldwinsville II, Photos by Paul Pacelli (Seneca River, modern Erie Canal near Lock 24). Click here for Part I.
"Maud, the Erie House Dog" with Joni Lincoln (learn about Erie Canal Heritage Park at Port Byron)

Where we camped/lodged
No camping for us, though I do hear that people do it right along the Trail. I've found hotels by analyzing Google maps for lodging nearest the Trail, though sometimes we will go a few miles for someplace more special like the Sunset Cottage at Sylvan Beach (Near Oneida Lake, its beautifully built and decorated by friends). It would be more interesting if we stayed in more B&B's, but so far, I haven't researched them. If you know of a place for us to stay, please let me know! Here is where we have stayed so far (or in the case of Little Falls, plan to stay):

Niagara Falls: Red Coach Inn
Lockport Inn and Suites
Rochester: Quality Inn and Suites
Newark Garden Hotel
Sylvan Beach: Sunset Cottage (Twin cottages if you have two families)
Oneida Community Mansion House
Canastota/Verona: Days Inn by Wyndham
Rome: Quality Inn
Utica: Holiday Inn Express & Suites
Little Falls: The Inn at Stone Mill (we plan to stay there as we liked our tour of this unique lodging)
Amsterdam: Microtel Inn & Suites

In 2000, Congress established the “Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor” because it was “instrumental in the establishment of strong political and cultural ties between New England, upstate New York and the old Northwest and facilitated the movement of ideas and people ensuring that social reforms like...the women’s rights movement spread across upstate New York to the rest of the country...” I believe by walking the Erie Canalway Trail, Jim and I can share our belief that women have the right to know how to protect their unborn babies from CMV. As I blog about our progress toward raising CMV awareness, I'm hoping our walk will become a movement, like the women’s rights movement, that will "spread across upstate New York to the rest of the country" to help prevent birth defects caused by congenital CMV.

Utica-Frankfort, Erie Canalway Trail

2022-06-19T10:09:00.001-07:00

April 23, 2022: Dedication of New Erie Canal Murals at Lyons Dry Dock, NY

2022-04-19T09:45:00.007-07:00

New Erie Canal Murals Unveiled at Lyons Dry Dock in Wayne County

Where: Lyons Dry Dock, 7665 Dry Dock Road, Lyons, NY 14489

Contact: Mark De Cracker, Mural Mania, 315-573-8170 or videomark@gmail.com

Mural Mania dedicated two murals, the "Poorhouse Lock 56" and “Honoring those who worked on the Erie/Barge Canal" in Lyons, New York, on Saturday, April 23, 2022, in celebration of the 17th annual Canal Clean Sweep hosted on Earth Day weekend. The iconic murals span two historic eras of the Erie Canal. Mark De Cracker of Mural Mania said the murals honors "those that built and maintain the Erie Canal. These murals, located along the Empire State Trail at the Lyons Dry Dock, give a viewer a glimpse back in time to honor those who built, maintained, and transported on the Erie Canal.

"The first mural Honoring those who worked on the Erie/Barge Canal was completed in April of 2021 and features the Dipper Dredge No.3, the tugboat DeWitt Clinton and a barge used for the canal spill. Dipper Dredge No. 3 is in the Lyons Dry Dock but has not been operated since 1985. It was built in 1929 but has some “recycled” components from 1909. As a steam powered vessel, it is unlikely that Dipper Dredge No. 3 will ever return to functioning condition. Across the top of the mural are the words 'Honoring those who worked on the Erie/Barge Canal.' We used a sepia background overlayed with color to bring the focus to the workers.

"The second mural, completed in November 2021, depicts old Erie Canal Lock 56, often referred to as the Poor House Lock because of its proximity to the former Wayne County Poorhouse. Also depicted in this mural is the Poorhouse Grocery store. A store on the Erie Canal where boaters bought goods as they traveled back and forth. This mural pays tribute to those that were instrumental in the success of the Erie Canal these include father and son Canal engineers, Jacob Leach and Augustus M. Leach of Lyons, portrayed chatting on the bulkhead of Lock 56. The mural also honors two boyhood friends Richard Garrity and Glen Salisbury who were hoagies on the Erie Canal. Richard Garrity wrote the book Canal Boatman. In 1990 these two friends were united after 70 years and shared their stories of traveling through this lock and on their way to NYC. In special tribute to Allyn Perry who has lived in the Poorhouse grocery store all her life, we painted the Allyn Perry boat going through the lock carrying local Hotchkiss peppermint oil going west."--Mark De Cracker , Mural Mania.

Write-up of the event: https://www.fingerlakesdailynews.com/2022/04/22/1412469/#:~:text=A%20store%20on%20the%20Erie,the%20bulkhead%20of%20Lock%2056.

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Program

Welcome: Mark De Cracker, Mural Mania/Trail Works, Inc.
Jim Brady, Lyons Town Supervisor
Brian Stratton, Canal Director
Cory Reynolds, Mural Mania
Allyn Perry, Lives in the Poorhouse
Christin Worth, Tourism Director
Brian Manktelow, NYS Assembly
Lisa Saunders, New York Stop CMV Project
Wayne County Bi-Centennial representative
Summary of the murals- Mark De Cracker
Medley- Towpath Friends/15 Miles on the Erie Canal
Cutting the ribbon
Refreshments

Travel show on Empire State Trail and mural paintings along the Erie Canalway Trail

2022-04-01T04:36:00.009-07:00

Image caption: Volunteer painters stand in front of the incomplete mural, Poorhouse Lock 56, on the day PBS personality Darely Newman of Travels with Darley came to help paint the mural on July 29, 2021. From left to right: Mark De Cracker, Cory Reynolds, Christina Lauber, Darely Newman, Lisa Saunders, Betty Rose Chardeen and daughter, Natalie Rose Chardeen. (Photograph by Christine Worth and supplied by Mark De Cracker.)

The travel show is now airing on TV and on the JOURNY website:

New York’s Empire State Trail - "Travel along New York’s Empire State Trail, which stretches from New York City to the Canadian Border with host Darley Newman. Hike and bike the trail, stopping in small towns and big cities for craft beer, local arts and culture." Watch: https://journy.tv/watch/travels-with-darley/new-yorks-empire-state-trail/

About 10.35 minutes into the show, host Darley Newman and Mark De Cracker of Mural Mania are seen walking the Erie Canalway Trail in Newark, New York, where Mark tells Darley how the murals seen along the Trail preserve the history of the Canal. Then Darley visits a studio in nearby Lyons where the Poorhouse Lock 56 mural, seen above, is being painted by artist and Iraq war veteran, Cory Reynolds, along with several other volunteers in July 2021. Cory gives Darley some paint and a brush and the chance to paint a little spot on it, though she does worry about messing it up. Cory explains how he finds painting murals therapeutic. He says, "I really enjoy doing it because I have PTSD. I come in here when my mind starts to wander and it just kind of relaxes me....If you got a lot going on in the real world, you can come in here and you can paint - put yourself in a little spot and that's your little spot that you have to worry about, nothing else. I'm glad to have you putting a little spot on there because that's one spot I don't have to worry about and I can move on..."

More about the Poorhouse Lock 56 mural in the Finger Lakes Times: https://www.fltimes.com/news/iraq-war-veterans-lyons-mural-wins-heritage-corridor-recognition/article_97d830be-ba36-5f9b-bad4-884c4947e374.html?fbclid=IwAR04_Lhe9VNC15Tflmt5SvW-1aD0-mBPNmsy_nf7EwePVSho83kaAF5xMWY

Mural of Erie Canal's Poorhouse Lock 56 by Iraq War Veteran and Volunteers Installed in Lyons, New York

2021-11-21T07:02:00.005-08:00

"Poorhouse Lock 56: Take a walk with us through time" mural installed on November 20, 2021. Photograph by Mark De Cracker of Mural Mania.

Mural of Erie Canal's Abandoned Poorhouse Lock (Lock 56) by Iraq War Veteran and Volunteers Installed in Lyons, New York

PBS to air volunteers painting the mural as Reynolds explains how art helps him cope with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Lyons, New York--The award-winning photograph of Poorhouse Lock (Lock 56) by Cory Reynolds, artist and Iraq War Army veteran, inspired his view of the lock portrayed in the latest mural installed by Mural Mania in Lyons on November 20, 2021. In addition to Reynolds, volunteer painters include: Betty Rose Chardeen and daughter Natalie Rose Chardeen, Mark De Cracker, Christina Lauber, Darely Newman, and Lisa Saunders.

Reynolds was interviewed while painting his vision of the lock by PBS personality Darely Newman of Travels with Darley. (His photograph of Lock 56 was honored by the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor)

Several past and former Erie Canal history makers are represented on the mural including father and son Canal engineers, Jacob Leach and Augustus M. Leach, portrayed chatting on the bulkhead of Lock 56, also called Poorhouse Lock, on the Enlarged Erie Canal. Jacob Leach, a miller and distillery operator, was one of the first merchants in Lyons and instrumental in the construction of the first Erie Canal (Clinton’s Ditch) and the Enlarged Erie Canal. His son, Augustus, was educated at Geneva Academy (now Hobart College), and in the 1850s was hired by the corps of civil engineers and oversaw the enlarged section from Buffalo to Syracuse. Augustus "also invented and drafted plans for the drop gate for locks that were accepted by the state and have continued in use to the present time." (Democrat and Chronicle,1901).

Other faces on the mural include a self-portrait of Cory Reynolds in addition to Erie Canal Historian, Cori Wilson, portrayed fishing on the Allyn Perry named after Allyn Perry who lives in the historic Poorhouse “Canal Store” beside the lock.

Mark De Cracker of Mural Mania said, “The mural is especially meaningful to me as former president of E.R.I.E. (Erie’s Restoration Interest Everyone). The Poorhouse Lock or Lock 56 was a center piece of this 501-c-3 restoration efforts during the 90’s. The mural honors those who helped our efforts for many years in this restoration. It also features mule drivers Richard Garrity and Glen Salisbury who traveled through this lock on many occasions with their families. I had the opportunity to reunite these childhood friends in 1990 after 70 years. Glen sent me a card in 1991 and wrote, “To dedicate a painting to Mr. Garrity and myself is a great honor and it will be cherished forever.”

Painting sponsors include great-grandmother Mary Ann (McDowell) Avazian, a descendant of the Leach engineers and former Lyon's resident. Avazian was recently featured completing a one mile Canalway Challenge in her wheelchair. Her daughter, Lisa Saunders, one of several volunteer mural painters, is currently walking the 360-mile Canalway Challenge with husband Jim Saunders to raise awareness of how to prevent the leading viral cause of birth defects, congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV). A bill named "Elizabeth's Law" in memory of their daughter, was passed by the NY Senate in 2021.

Construction of Lock 56 began in 1842 and was completed in 1849. The ruins of Lock 56 can be found off Dry Dock Road behind the old red brick building that once served as a grocery store for canallers. This is about a ½ mile west of present-day Lock 28-A in Lyons.

For more information, contact Mark De Cracker of Mural Mania, at videomark@gmail.com , 315-573-8170 (cell), for visit: www.muralmania.org

Image caption: Volunteer painters stand in front of the incomplete mural on the day PBS personality Darely Newman of Travels with Darley came to help paint the mural on July 29, 2021. From left to right: Mark De Cracker, Cory Reynolds, Christina Lauber, Darely Newman, Lisa Saunders, Betty Rose Chardeen and daughter, Natalie Rose Chardeen. (Photograph by Christine Worth and supplied by Mark De Cracker.)

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Additional information:

Patricia Alena (known as “Peppermint Patty”), founder of the Lyons Heritage Society and Director/ Curator of The H. G. Hotchkiss Essential Oil Museum (“Peppermint Museum”), stated,, "Jacob Leach, a local businessman and canal contractor, was instrumental in the selection of Lyons as the county seat. Leach was a charter member of the first Bank of Lyons and a member of the Ontario County Assembly. The latter helped in the formation of present day Wayne County" ("LOOKING BACK: Lyons, Wayne's county seat" by Patricia Alena, Jul 11, 2021).

Jacob Leach's first distillery was on the same property as the Museum but on the banks of Ganargua Creek before it was moved because of canal construction.

This sketch is in Morrison’s book on early Lyons. He dates the building at 1812. J. Leach distillery was for sour mash whiskey and located across the street from the Leach Mills according to Patricia Alena. The building in the foreground is what the Peppermint Museum once looked like before the third floor burned. Between those two buildings was the Clyde River and the Erie Canal.

Lisa Saunders stands at the grave marker of Jacob Leach (and Augustus Leach and others) at the Lyons Rural Cemetery on October 15, 2021. Photograph by Patricia Alena (known as “Peppermint Patty”), founder of the Lyons Heritage Society.

Leach Road signs in Lyons, NY, on Feb 21, 2021. Photograph by Mark DeCracker, Co-Founder of Mural Mania.

Clinton's Ditch and Expanded Erie Canal: Leach Engineers of Lyons, Father and Son, Jacob and Augustus M. Leach

by Lisa Saunders (descendant)

Lock 27, Lyons, New York, in Oct. 2020.

In Lyons, New York, home of all three stages of the Erie Canal, is modern Lock E27, off Leach Road. Leach Road and Bridge, which crosses over the active Erie Canal, may have been named in honor of father and son, Jacob and Augustus M. Leach of Lyons, contractors on the Erie Canal. Jacob Leach (1777-1853) is my 4th great-grandfather and his son, Augustus Mortimer Leach (1825-1901), my 3rd great-grandfather. They are buried at the Lyons Rural Cemetery.

Jacob Leach (1777-1853) contribution to Clinton's Ditch (completed in 1825):

Jacob Leach worked as an engineer on the first and second Erie Canals. The first Erie Canal was completed in 1825 (the same year his son Augustus was born--Augustus grew up to become an engineer on the Enlarged Erie Canal).

The first Erie Canal is now referred to “Clinton’s Ditch” (see above sign in Lyons) after DeWitt Clinton, the New York Governor who fought for its construction.

On October 17, 1825, Jacob Leach attended a meeting at T. Hawley's in Lyons with other appointed committee members responsible for making celebration arrangements for the opening of the Erie Canal. The opening occurred on "Oct.26, 1825, at the time the two ends of the canal were united in Lockport, and the 'waters were let over the mountain range.' The unique celebration throughout the state was the transmission of the exact time by firing of cannon--24 and 32 pounders--distributed along the canal eight miles apart, a total distance 365 miles from Lake Erie to the Hudson River."

Two days later, Governor Clinton's boat parade came through Lyons on October 28, arriving "at the lock at the foot of Broad street greeted by a fire of artillery. They were met by committees from Geneva and Lyons and escorted under a triumphal arch to the Joppa House, where dinner was served and toasts exchanged." ("Grip's" historical souvenir of Lyons, N. Y, p. 13,1904). (Clinton had begun his boat parade from Lake Erie, where he filled a keg with water and when he reached the southern end of the New York Harbor (Sandy Hook, NJ), he poured the Erie water into the Atlantic Ocean. He declared to his companions, "...may the God of Heavens and the Earth smile most propitiously on the work, and render it subservient to the best interests of the human race." (Bernstein, Wedding of the Waters: The Erie Canal and the Making of a Great Nation, 2006, p. 319.)

Background on Jacob Leach

Jacob Leach was one of the first merchants in Lyons. "Jacob Leach built a frame building on Water street in 1812 and opened a larger general store. Joseph M. Demmon was first his clerk and then his partner. In 1814 Leach & Co. erected a new store. " ("Grip's" p. 48).

"Jacob Leach came to Lyons from Litchfield, Conn., in 1809, and operated a distillery on the north side of Ganargwa Creek until the site was wanted for the Erie Canal in 1824. He then became a merchant with Joseph M. Demmon on Water street. He was a canal contractor, and erected a mill on the Ganargwa that was burned and rebuilt in 1837. He was a justice of the peace several years, member of Assembly in 1823, and at one time president of the old Lyons Bank with Thaddeus W. Patchen as cashier. He had ten children, and died in 1853, aged seventy-five years." (History of the Town of Lyons, 1895).

"...Jacob Leach, one of the most prominent and progressive of the pioneer settlers of Lyons. Jacob Leach went to Lyons in 1809 from Litchfield Conn. and in the course of an active career devoted to the development of the section, constructed and operated the first grist mill in Lyons, the first brewery and in 1812 one of the first general stores." (Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, August 12, 1901, Page 4)

Jacob Leach contribution to the Enlarged Canal:

Beginning in 1835, the Erie Canal was enlarged. Jacob worked on the Enlarged Erie Canal but died before the entire enlargement was completed in 1862. This Canal is now referred to as the Enlarged Erie Canal or the Old Erie Canal.

"Jacob Leach took and completed several contacts for work and after he had passed the allotted age of three score years and ten he built (with Robert Ennis) the section extending west from Perrine's hill to the poorhouse lock [Lock 56]."(The Sisson Family of Lyons, New York, 2005, p. 233). (Also mentioned on page from a church book found at Find a Grave.)

Lock 56 (or Poorhouse Lock) as it appears in recent years. The red brick building, now a private residence, "served as a grocery for the canallers" (eriecanal.org). Photograph by Mark DeCracker.

Jacob was also the resident engineer for the Canal portion in Jordan. From Onondaga Standard Extra (10/24/1840). "At a meeting of the contractors for the enlargement of the Erie Canal on the Jordan Level held at the house of Seba Bonta in the village of Jordan on the 26th of October 1840...Jacob Leach [and several others] were appointed to said committee. Since now there were sufficient funds, work which had much slowed down could be resumed on section 10, no longer ago than the 10 day of this month, the contractor, Mr. Jacob Leach, was the resident engineer and in the presence of the chief engineer, strongly urged to press his work forwards faster than he was going on with it. He was directed to excavate 10,000 yards monthly and had increase the number of laborers and had erected 20 shanties" (Sisson, p. 234).

Jacob died in 1853 at the age of 75. His wife Sarah outlived him by nine years. "He was a quite man, honest with his fellow men. He worked with the Democratic party. He held the office of Justice of Peace for a number of years. He was a member of Humanity Masonic Lodge." (Sisson, p. 234). The descendent of Robert Ennis, Jacob's fellow engineer on the Enlarged Erie Canal section, extending west from Perrine's hill to the poorhouse lock, showed me Jacob Leach's 1820 certificate as "Master Mason" with the Humanity Masonic Lodge.

From anonymous: "These are bank notes from Lyons Bank, which Jacob Leach was instrumental in establishing the very first bank in Lyons in 1836. The $5 note has his signature as President of the Bank, which at the date of note shows that the Bank was just 5 months old. The other 1862 note shows draft to be drawn on the business account of his sons, H.J.Leach and M.S.Leach. ( Heman and Miles)

Just before the start of the Civil War, the Lyons Bank had a contract with the State of New York to collect canal tolls."

JACOB'S SON:

Augustus Mortimer Leach (1825-1901): contribution to the Enlarged Canal (completed 1862):

Augustus Mortimer Leach was educated at Geneva Academy, now Hobart College. Born the year the first Erie Canal opened (in 1825), Augustus died in 1901, four years before construction began on the modern Erie Canal (once referred to as New York State Barge Canal).

In the 1850s, Augustus, was employed by the corps of civil engineers and was promoted to overseeing the section from Syracuse to Buffalo. According to his 1901 obituary, Augustus "also invented and drafted plans for the drop gate for locks that were accepted by the state and have continued in use to the present time." (Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, August 12, 1901, Page 4).

As of this writing, 11/21/21, I haven't found proof of the drop gate invention in State of New York documents, but found the following in Google books: August M. Leach is listed among four "First Assistant" Engineers on the Western Division in "Manual for the Use of the Legislature of the State of New York",1853, p.440, and as 1st Engineer under "Eastern subdivision in the western division of the Erie Canal Enlargement "AND 1st Engineer under "Genesee Valley Canal" in "Documents of the Senate of the State of New York, Volume 1," 1854, p.142.

Augustus Leach's obituary tells of his career and states that Augustus "secured an early business training under his father Jacob in the milling business. In his college course he showed a natural talent for drafting and drawing, and after his graduation he worked as a draughtman for the corps of civil engineers engaged in plotting a new route for the Erie canal through [the Lyons] section. From them he acquired knowledge of civil engineering and he soon rose to a position of prominence in the department of state engineer and surveyor. In the early [18] fifties he was placed in charge of the engineering work on the western section of the Erie canal, having under his supervision the section extending from Syracuse to Buffalo. On the completion of this work he surveyed the Genesee Valley canal from Rochester to Olean [south and a little west of Rochester] and built a big storage dam at Cuba [near Olean]. During this period he also invented and drafted plans for the drop gate for locks that were accepted by the state and have continued in use to the present time [1901]. According to an obit: "From 1855 to 1857 [Augustus] was assistant state engineer under Van Rensselear Richmond of Lyons who was then state engineer and surveyor. During the latter part of that period, Mr. Leach lived in Rochester and Cuba, Allegany County. Later he became engaged in the milling business in Brooklyn together with his father-in-law and a Brooklyn miller under the firm name of Smith, Leach and Jewell. In a few years Mr. Leach, whose early training in the milling business under his father had adapted him for the work, bought out his partners and for ten years conducted the business alone. During the Civil War he had many contracts for furnishing supplies to the government, and both then and at its close his business was remarkably successful so that in 1870 he had amassed a fortune on which he was well able to retire... "("The Sisson Family of Lyons, New York", Sisson, David Arne, 2005, p. 234-243)

Augustus built a large house on a hill in Lyons when he returned from Brooklyn. Calling it Terrace Lawn, it still stands today at 27 Cherry Street. After his death, his son Francis (Frank) Leach lost the family fortune in a bad investment. The dwindling funds could no longer support Augustus's widow and Frank committed suicide in 1912.

I descend from his daughter, Emma (Leach) Sisson, seen at the bottom left. (Images from "The Sisson Family of Lyons, New York", Sisson, David Arne, 2005, page 262.)

References:

Cowles, George W., History of the Town of Lyons, 1895
"Grip's" historical souvenir of Lyons, N. Y, p. 13,1904.
Sisson, David Arne, "The Sisson Family of Lyons, New York", 2005, pages 234-243
Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, New York, Page 4, August 12, 1901,https://www.newspapers.com/clip/50741272/democrat-and-chronicle/

(1) NOTES ABOUT AUGUSTUS M. LEACH: One of several Augustus M. Leach obituaries, the following appeared August 12, 1901, Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, New York, Page 4: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/50741272/democrat-and-chronicle/ Transcribed:

PEACEFUL DEATH OF AUGUSTUS M. LEACH
Lyons Has lost an Honored and Influential Resident.
Retirement in 1875
Youngest Son of Lyon's Prominent Pioneers Did Valuable Work as Civil Engineer and Surveyor--Wayne.

Augustus M. Leach, a prominent retired business man of Lyons, died unexpectedly Saturday morning at the advanced age of 75 years. He had been in impaired health for a long time, the result of old age and affection of the heart, but his condition last week had shown nothing to differentiate it from his general health for some months. Friday he took his usual drive and retired at his customary hour with no sign of the approaching end. He passed away between midnight and 7 o'clock so quietly that knowledge of the fact did not come to the members of the family until they entered his room to awaken him for breakfast Saturday morning.

Mr. Leach was the youngest of 10 children born to the late Jacob Leach, one of the most prominent and progressive of the pioneer settlers of Lyons. Jacob Leach went to Lyons in 1809 from Litchfield Conn. and in the course of an active career devoted to the development of the section, constructed and operated the first grist mill in Lyons, the first brewery and in 1812 one of the first general stores.

Augustus M. Leach was born November 1, 1825. He attended a preliminary education in the Lyons union school and a collegiate education at Hobart college from which he graduated with the class of '48. He selected as his profession that of a civil engineer for which the enlargement of the canals and railroad construction offered abundant opportunity. Soon after his graduation from college he obtained a position under the state engineer and surveyor and he showed so much adaptability for the work that in the early [18] fifties he was placed in charge of the engineering work on the western section of the canal, having under his supervision a section extending from Syracuse to Buffalo. During this period he invented and drafted plans for a drop gate for locks that were accepted by the state and have continued in use to the present time. At the conclusion of his work on the Erie he surveyed the route for the Genesee Valley canal from Rochester to Olean under the direction of Van Rensselaer Richmond, of Lyons, who was then state engineer and surveyor.

Just before the outbreak of the Civil war Mr. Leach secured an opportunity to engage in the milling business, a pursuit which his father had been the first to follow in Lyons and in which he himself had training under his father. The business was located in Brooklyn and was conducted under the firm name of Leach, Smith and Jewell. In a few years Mr. Leach bought out his partners and then for fifteen years conducted it alone under the name of Williamsburg Mills. It was the largest establishment of its kind in the city and amassed for its owner a fortune on which he was well able to retire from business in 1875.

He then returned to Lyons on the spacious Leach grounds on Cherry Street, erected a residence that is one of the costliest, the most attractive and the finest fit in the county. There he had since resided, enjoying a well earned leisure among the comforts of home life and the pleasures he always took from literary study and reading. He was a man of refined mind and brought culture and his library and art collection was one of the largest and best selected in the vicinity. He never embarked in business after his retirement in 1875 and never cared to enter public life.

Apart from his literary study he took no active interest in matters away from his home village, but in affairs of concern to the community he was always ready to give the advantages of the experience of his successful business career and of his literary accomplishments. In this way he served as president of the village and for several years as school trustee. He was also deeply interested in the affairs of the Presbyterian Church of which he was an elder for many years.

In June, 1855, Mr. Leach married Mary Jane Smith, of Lima. She died in 1868, and in 1874 Mr. Leach was married to Miss Emma Jerome Richards, of Norwich, Connecticut, who survives. Other surviving relatives are four sons: Frank Leach, a lawyer of Kansas City, Albert Leach, a physician at Mt. Morris, and Frederick and Arthur Leach, of Lyons, and two daughters, Miss Minnie Leach and Mrs. [Emma Louise Leach ]Sisson, of Lyons.

JACOB AND AUGUSTUS LEACH AND HOW I DESCEND FROM THEM

1) "Jacob Leach (parents, Richard and Mary Strong) married Sarah "Sally" Bradley in Litchfield Village [Connecticut] on 21 March 1804. Three years later they came to the village of Phelps, a few miles south of Lyons, where they lived for one or two years before settling in Lyons...In 1812 Jacob started one of the first general stores in Lyons, and he was the one who distilled the first peppermint oil in Lyons according to the obituary of his son Augustus Mortimer Leach in 1901...Jacob constructed his distillery on the north bank of Mud Creek in Lyons, near its junction with the Canandaigua Outlet. He kept the distillery in operation until was necessary about 1820 to remove it to make way for the Erie Canal..."(Sisson, p. 230-231). Jacob and Sarah Leach's 10th and last child:

2) Augustus M. Leach, born in Lyons on 11/1/1825. Married Mary Jane Smith, 6/7/1853, in Lima, NY.

3) Emma Louise Leach, born 11/21/1860. Married Frank Munro Sisson on 6/23/1881, at her home on 27 Cherry Street, Lyons, NY

4) Mary Arne Sisson, born 4/5/1882, married Gilbert "Bert" McDowell on 9/11/1905 at Grace Church, Lyons.

5) Russell Gale McDowell, born 6/28/1911. Married Ida Lee 6/3/1937 in St. Luke's Episcopal Church Sodus Center.

6) Mary Ann McDowell, born 10/21/1938 in Town of Sodus at home. Married Richard W. Avazian, 1/10/1960 in Freeport, NY. Living in Baldwinsville, NY.

7) Lisa Marie Avazian, born 3/31/1961 in Charlottesville, VA. Married James P. Saunders of Auburn on 5/29/1983 in Airmont, NY. They now live in Baldwinsville, NY. Lisa and Jim had two daughters. The surviving one has two children.

OTHER MURALS IN LYONS

"They call me Sal" mural, part of Mural Mania. Mark DeCracker, co-founder of Mural Mania, said of its dedication:

One of the features of the 2016 Global Mural Conference was the 12 x 16 mosaic mural painted on Evolon. “They Call me Sal”. This mural has 728 six-inch squares painted by art students from elementary to students in college across NY State. This mosaic mural was organized by art teacher Lisa Petrosina. They Call me Sal features the history of New York State, and the flora and fauna. If you look closely you will find roses, blue birds, Harriet Tubman, and the World Trade Center featured. This mural is the tenth mural in Lyons, and is a gateway mural on the abutment greeting the bikers or others on the Empire Trail. This mural is mounted on the Rochester-Syracuse Trolley abutment. This mural was made possible from a grant from the Erie Canalway, Canal Corporation and donations from Greystone Paper (Evolon) and paint from Golden Artist Colors. Mural Mania would also like to thank F.S. Short & Son Contractors “For all your excavating needs.” for the donation to seal the mural. Mural Mania would like to thank the Lyons Heritage Society for this plaque.

Winston's Dream (2007) in Lyons, NY. Part of Mural Mania. Mark DeCracker, co-founder of Mural Mania, wrote:

Mounted on the old trolley bed abutment in the newly dedicated G. Winston Dobbins Memorial Park, at Lock 27, this duplicates a scene from an actual postcard from 1910. It’s complete with packet boat, mules, hogies, a trolley, and the famous Hotchkiss Peppermint building. The mural was created by James Zeger. This mural and park was completed with the help of over 200 volunteers.

Jim Saunders beside the mules in "Winston's Dream" in Lyons, New York. The massive painting, inspired by a 1910 postcard of the Erie Canal in Lyons, is part of Mural Mania. With its mission, “Preservation of History through Community Art,” Mural Mania creates time travel focal points in canal towns along the Erie Canalway Trail.

Jim and Lisa Saunders (descendent of Leach) in Lyons on October 30, 2020. Jim and Lisa Saunders are tracking their walking miles as registrants with the 360-mile "Erie Canalway Challenge". The couple live in Baldwinsville, NY, near modern Lock 24.

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Stop CMV hands and rocks

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Stop CMV rock placed on Trail of Hope at the Lyons Community Center along the Erie Canalway Corridor ahead of the June 5 CMV Awareness event

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Turtles in Kirkville on the Erie Canal

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