Locations and Trailheads
Travel the path of the canal in this picturesque journey from Cleveland to Portsmouth

Canal Terminology
Learn just what all these terms refer to

My Canal Journal
Get updates on Canal related events and trail construction

Links
Internet sites relevant to the Ohio & Erie Canal

Resources and Recom-mendations
Some sources of information used on this website

Crystal Springs Trailhead

Location: The Crystal Springs Trailhead is located on Erie Avenue north of Massillon. It is accessible to travelers on the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway (Erie Avenue). It is located north of Stark County Mile Marker 8 on the Towpath Trail.

History: In 1835, Daniel Slanker laid out the plat for a town south of Canal Fulton called Millport. When the post office was established there in the 1870's, the name was changed to Crystal Springs so as to not confuse the town with another Millport in Ohio. The town had a grocery store, saloon, and the post office. The Schuster Brewery was also located in Crystal Springs and the beer brewed there was shipped south by canal to be bottled in Massillon. Another famous building in Crystal Springs was a grist mill called the Crystal Springs Mill.  It is no longer standing today, but the Smith Mill near the Towpath still does, having been built in the mid 1920's.

A park called the Crystal Springs Bridge Park is located at the trailhead and features a 1914 iron bridge that provides a scenic view of the Tuscarawas River. This section of the Towpath Trail is very scenic and picturesque despite the fact that the canal is not watered here. A picnic area existed here in the 1890's that residents of Massillon would ride to on canal boats for a day of recreation.

Forty Corners Trailhead

Location: Forty Corners Trailhead is located on Forty Corners Road north of Massillon. It is accessible to motorists on the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway by turning west on Forty Corners Road from Erie Avenue (Scenic Byway). It is located north of Stark County Mile Marker 9 on the Towpath Trail.

Bridgeport Quarry Trailhead

Location: The Bridgeport Quarry Trailhead is located on Erie Avenue north of Massillon. It is accessible to travelers on the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway (Erie Avenue). It is south of Stark County Mile Marker 9 on the Towpath Trail.

History: Bridgeport developed south of Crystal Springs but was never officially platted as a town. The small towns between Canal Fulton and Massillon were busy due to the amount of coal that was brought to the canal from the mines on the west side of the Tuscarawas River. There was apparently a stone quarry in Bridgeport as well (hence the name of the trailhead) but I don't know for sure since there are no interpretive waysides explaining the area's history in Stark County. There were at least two saloons in this area and supposedly many fights broke out around them. There are reportedly several culverts, two sluices, and a wasteway in this area.

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