When New York State began enlarging the Erie Canal in the mid-1830s, the project became the center of a bitter controversy over the use of public money for internal improvements, and the state legislature did not properly fund it. A financial panic in 1837 compounded the difficulties. The fiscal situation became so severe that the state legislature passed the Stop Law of 1842, halting all public works projects until a special tax on real and personal estates ensured their funding. James Ott, the contractor for Lock 29, or Empire Lock, personally borrowed money to pay debts he incurred constructing the lock. In 1845, he petitioned the Canal Board for compensation, but received only half of what he requested because the board believed his claim was padded. When completed, Lock 29 had two side-by-side lock chambers, allowing boats going in opposite directions to lock through at the same time. The size of the lock determined the size of the barges that could pass through: the original Erie Canal's locks were 90 feet long by 15 feet wide, while the Enlarged Erie's locks were 110 feet by 18 feet, and almost all freight barges on the Enlarged Erie were 17½ feet wide, although their lengths varied.
