What Lies Beneath The Streets Of Buffalo Is Creepy Yet Amazing
By Samantha Gill|Published March 30, 2017
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Samantha Gill
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Samantha Jo is a freelance copywriter, proofreader, and social media manager. In her spare time, Samantha enjoys drinking coffee, crafting, camping, blogging at kinandkindling.com, and sipping only the finest of boxed wines – not necessarily in that order.
Buffalo is one of America’s oldest cities, and with that comes a whole lot of history – both good and bad. First, let’s talk about the good: Buffalo boasted some of the most booming industry. Case in point: the Erie Canal. Built towards the end of the Industrial Revolution, the Erie Canal was legendary for its time, spanning over 300 miles from Albany to Buffalo and providing shipping and settlement opportunities that did not exist before.
Wondering what the bad could possibly be? We’ll let you in on a not-so-secret thought: Really old things tend to attract (or keep) really old spirits. One example of a creepy – albeit amazing – artifact can be found 40 minutes from Buffalo underneath the Erie Canal at the Lockport Cave.
Experience eery isolation at Lockport Cave: 5 Gooding Street, Lockport.
The Lockport Caves are man-made caves and tunnels which were built at the beginning of progress on the Erie Canal, dating back to the early 1800s. Travel to Lockport and travel back in time as you embark on 70-minute guided tours of the caves, both inside and out. Once your tour begins, you will be in awe of the revolutionary water power tunnels, which take visitors up close and personal from Canal Locks 67-71, which were recently rehabilitated from their original construction from 1838.
Formations, stalactites, and artifacts galore await.
If you're into history, you'll want to head deeper into the tunnels to discover ruins from the Industrial Revolution, several unique geological formations, and artifacts left by the men who built the tunnel during their work on the Erie Canal.
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"Blasted out of solid rock," the cave was revolutionary for its time.
The Lockport Cave is 1,600 total feet long and served as a water power runnel, which provided water power to three industries during the Industrial Revolution. The cave was an invention of Birdsill Holly, a great innovator who held over 150 patents in his lifetime.
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Get your sea legs ready for the second half of the tour.
The middle of the tour takes you through the middle of the caves with one of America's longest underground boat rides, where you will discover more ruins from the 1800s. The underground boat ride takes passengers along the Erie Canal to discover history like you've never seen before.
According to the Lockport Caves website, the ride has been described as both "peaceful and eerie," and we couldn't have said it better ourselves! The waterway is largely unlit, with the exception of a few lights placed along the walls of the cave.
If history isn't really your thing, but you enjoy "the dark side," you'll be pleased to know that the Lockport Cave offers a "Ghost Hunters Experience," allowing visitors to investigate paranormal activity in the dimly lit underground tunnels.
The Ghost Hunters Experience is not for the faint of heart. The tour is four hours long and takes you on a guided tour of the entire perimeter of the caves. It's rumored that the cave builder, Birdsill Holly, had plenty of interaction with the paranormal himself, and the Cave was even featured on the SyFy channel!
Find out for yourself! Ghost Hunters Experiences are available by reservation only on Saturday nights from 9:00 PM - 2:00 AM (smack dab in the middle of the "witching hour"). Bring your own lighting to explore the caves, as they are located deep underground and don't receive any natural light.
Have you gone underground at Lockport Caves? Did you experience anything eery or suspicious? Share your stories or favorite memories of the history of the canal with us!
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