Back in the days when water routes were a prime means of transportation for long trips, the Erie Canal in upstate New York was developed and provided income for laborers including Irish right off the boat from the old country. I recently came across an online publication detailing payments made by New York State government for enlargement work in 1849. These payments are shown in lists of specific amounts paid to named individuals, with some lists being contractors or tradesmen but many lists being work crews, the ones doing shovel or pick-axe work. These lists are grouped by location along the length of the canal, with the below link taking you to a West Troy (Albany Co., now Watervliet) crew list full of Irish names. West Troy is directly across the Hudson River from Troy in Rensselaer County, which Rootsweb Clare mailing list creator Pat Connors has studied in depth for its influx of Irish immigrants (see her Connors Genealogy website for a large amount of data).
Documents of the Senate of the State of New York, Volume 3
by New York (State) Legislature, 1851
http://tinyurl.com/3lmu7pr
The lists start on page 11 and continue through page 271, after which the Genesee Canal payments are listed, followed by other public works projects. Rochester work occupies several pages, starting at p. 139. Although the names are not indexed, this Google book version has a search engine.
Hope that helps someone with tracing the immigration route of an ancestor.
Sharon Carberry (USA)
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