Concrete Barges

Steel was in tight supply because of the war when the Barge Canal was finished in 1918.  Alternative materials were sought to create a fleet for use in the war effort.  Wood was used of course; but the government also authorized the construction of 21 reinforced concrete barges like those seen here.

Unfortunately, not even reinforcing could prevent these brittle hulls from being damaged by frequent contact with solid objects.  Once damaged, repairs were never permanent.  Concrete was tried in the construction of ships elsewhere, but on the Erie wood and steel were more practical choices.

The concrete barges lasted for about five years, on average.  Some sank and had to be broken up in place to clear the channel for other traffic.  Those that didn't sink were towed and sunk alongside the approaches to locks in the now canalized Mohawk River (like those above at Rotterdam) to continue their service as erosion-control structures.