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Lake Champlain’s Canal Schooners provided business owners of the Champlain Valley with the ability to thrive and prosper during the 1800’s. Versatile, dependable and sturdy, the vessels carried Vermont products to buyers and markets previously beyond the reach of local businesses, the result being a significant economic boom for local merchants during the 19th century.
Prior to the canal schooner’s invention, there was no efficient way to transport quantities of local goods a significant distance. Even after the Champlain Canal, which connected Lake Champlain to the Hudson river, was built in 1823, cargo had to be laboriously moved from a sailing ship to a canal barge, a time consuming and often damaging process. Able to serve as both a sailing ship and canal barge, the versatile Lake Champlain Canal Schooner was designed to solve this problem and satisfy the needs of regional merchants and shipping companies.
After being loaded with cargo on Lake Champlain, the Canal Schooner would set sail for Whitehall, New York where it would “unstep” or lower the masts and raise its centerboard for entry into the Champlain Canal. From the canal, the vessels headed south down the Hudson River to the markets of New York City and beyond. The Lake Champlain Canal Schooner was largely responsible for the Champlain Valley’s entry into the national economy and thus allowed Vermont business to prosper and thrive.
Committed to continuing the tradition of the Lake Champlain Canal Schooner, we at the Fleischer Jacobs Group have tailored our services to meet the needs of local business owners. Today, we provide innovative solutions in insurance, employee benefits, asset management, and a range of financial and business planning services - important, necessary services that meet the demands of today’s large and small businesses, their owners and their employees. Like the Lake Champlain Canal Schooner of yesterday, the Fleischer Jacobs Group of today provides Vermont’s businesses and individuals important and essential services that help them thrive and prosper.
Please visit the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum web site to learn more about the Lake Champlain Canal Schooner and the fascinating maritime history of the region.