MOMENTS IN TIME - Oct. 15, 2009

The History Channel

• On Oct. 26, 1825, the 425-mile Erie Canal opens, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean via the Hudson River. The work was largely done by Irish diggers, who had to rely on primitive tools. They were paid $10 a month, and barrels of whiskey were placed along the canal route as encouragement.

• On Oct. 28, 1886, the Statue of Liberty, a gift of friendship from the people of France, is dedicated in New York Harbor by President Grover Cleveland. On the pedestal was inscribed “The New Colossus,” a sonnet by American poet Emma Lazarus that begins “Give me your tire...