Research

Scope and Content Note

B1353-95: This accretion of contract plans is the working copy kept and used over several decades, primarily by the Operations and Maintenance Division of the department (established in 1943 when the Department of Public Works was reorganized) and its predecessor units. As such the plans represent more than blueprint copies of the original drawings. These "office copies" often include attachments in the form of maps and plans for revisions and updates. Many such amendments occurred decades after the original set was created, and in some cases documentation follows changes wrought by natural events (e.g. flood) and includes hydrologic data gathered in modern times.

The accretion pertains to work in Region 3. Included are maps and charts for lake elevations and buoy locations, and hydrographs of the Oneida, Seneca, and Oswego rivers (1905-1915); charts showing elevations of Cayuga and Oneida lakes (late 1950s to early 1960s); plans for specific engineering projects such as lock thrust bearings, wrought iron plates for canal walls, and some dimension sheets for generator shafts; and sets of plans and related material for dozens of Barge Canal contracts (grouped by contract number). Rolled material often includes multiple sheets with unique captions and dates.