Dundee Lake
| Dundee Canal | |
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Dundee Canal (right) in 1997, with Passaic River in the center. Looking southeast, with Garfield on the left bank of the river and Passaic on the right. The Dundee Dam with headgate for the canal is in the foreground, and the former Dundee Textile Mill is seen between the river and canal.
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| Specifications | |
| Length | 1.8 mi (2.9 km) |
| Status | Abandoned |
| History | |
| Original owner | Dundee Manufacturing Company |
| Construction began | 1858 |
| Date of first use | July 1861 |
| Date completed | 1861 |
| Date closed | c. 1930s |
| Geography | |
| Start point | Clifton, New Jersey |
| End point | Passaic, New Jersey |
| Beginning coordinates | 40°52′57″N 74°07′37″W / 40.8825°N 74.127°WCoordinates: 40°52′57″N 74°07′37″W / 40.8825°N 74.127°W |
| Ending coordinates | 40°52′23″N 74°07′00″W / 40.873°N 74.1167°W |
| Connects to | Passaic River |
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| Nearest city | Passaic, New Jersey |
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| Coordinates | 40°52′25″N 74°7′12″W / 40.87361°N 74.12000°W |
| Area | 66 acres (27 ha) |
| Built | 1858 |
| Architect | Kick, Ludwig; et al. |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival, Functional industrial |
| NRHP Reference # | 98001640 |
| NJRHP # | 2351 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | January 21, 1999 |
| Designated NJRHP | November 5, 1998 |
The Dundee Canal was an industrial canal in Clifton and Passaic in Passaic County, New Jersey. It was built between 1858 and 1861 and ran parallel to the Passaic River. It supplied hydropower and water for manufacturing. There was interest by some members of the business community to modify the canal to support navigational uses, but the canal was never used for that purpose.
The Dundee Canal, along with the advent of railroads, stimulated rapid economic and population growth in Passaic and the surrounding area through the late 19th and early 20th century.
The canal was about 1.8 miles (2.9 km) long. The Dundee Dam across the Passaic River was located at the north end of the canal, between Acquackanonk Township (present-day Clifton) and East Passaic (present-day Garfield), and it provided water for the canal. The dam was the lowest hydropower site built on the river, just above the tidal zone.
The Dundee Manufacturing Company (DMC), incorporated 1832, built the Dundee Dam across the Passaic River c. 1833, replacing an earlier wing dam it had built c. 1830. The dam was designed to supply water power to clothing mills in the area. The company also built a 12 feet (3.7 m) deep, 0.5 miles (0.80 km) long canal c. 1833, adjacent to the site of the later Dundee Canal. It operated the short canal for a few years.
In 1857 the New Jersey Legislature authorized the company to raise the water level of the dam, and this action flooded adjacent areas and created Dundee Lake. The flooding of various properties led to calls by area manufacturers and other community members to make the canal into a navigable waterway. This would have been an unusual combination of uses for a single canal.
The DMC, which had reorganized in 1850, built the Dundee Canal between 1858 and 1861. This canal was not financially successful for navigation, and the company went into receivership in 1864. It reorganized as the Dundee Water Power and Land Company (DWPLC) in 1872, and the company's new emphasis on supplying water and selling land was more lucrative.
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