List of canals in the United States

The following is a list of canals in the United States:

Transportation canals in operation

This list includes active canals and artificial waterways that are maintained for use by boats. Although some abandoned canals and drainage canals have stretches that can be paddled in a small craft, such as a canoe, they are not included in this list.

Name	Place	State	Navigable length	Notes
Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal	Chesapeake	VA		Two canals apart in two states
Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal	Currituck County	NC		Two canals apart in two states
Alligator–Pungo Canal	Hyde County, Tyrell County	NC
Assawoman Canal	Sussex County	DE		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway	East Coast			Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Augusta Canal	Augusta; Columbia County	GA		Not navigable to other waterways
Bricktown Canal	Bricktown	OK		Has water taxi service. Not navigable to other waterways
Barkley Canal	Lyon County	KY
Cal-Sag Channel	Cook County	IL		Part of the Illinois Waterway
Calcasieu Ship Channel	Calcasieu Parish, Cameron Parish	LA
Canaveral Barge Canal	Merritt Island	FL
Cape Cod Canal	Barnstable County	MA		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Cape May Canal	Cape May County	NJ		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Cayuga–Seneca Canal	Seneca County	NY
Chain of Rocks Canal	Madison County	IL		The most downstream lock on the Upper Mississippi River
Champlain Canal	Upstate New York	NY
Chesapeake & Delaware Canal	Cecil County	MD		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Chesapeake & Delaware Canal	New Castle County	DE		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal	Cook County, Will County	IL		Part of the Illinois Waterway
Clam Lake Canal	Cadillac	MI
Corpus Christi Ship Channel	Corpus Christi	TX
Cumberland and Oxford Canal	Naples	ME		Only the Songo Lock is still in use
Delcambre Canal	Iberia Parish	LA
Dismal Swamp Canal	Chesapeake	VA		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Dismal Swamp Canal	Camden County	NC		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Duluth Ship Canal	Duluth	MN
Erie Canal	Upstate New York	NY
Galveston and Brazos Canal	Brazoria County	TX
Gowanus Canal	Brooklyn	NY
Great Lakes Waterway	Great Lakes region			Has many branches. Reaches into Canada
Gulf Intracoastal Waterway	Gulf Coast			Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Harlem River Ship Canal	New York	NY		Now indistinguishable from the Harlem River
Haulover Canal	Brevard County	FL		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Houston Ship Channel	Houston	TX
Illinois Waterway	Northern and Central Illinois	IL
Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal	East Chicago	IN		Has two branches
Industrial Canal	New Orleans	LA
Intracoastal Waterway				Consists of many canals and natural waterbodies
Keweenaw Waterway	Houghton County	MI
Lake Washington Ship Canal	Seattle	WA
Lauritzen Canal	Richmond	CA
Lechmere Canal	East Cambridge	MA
Lewes and Rehoboth Canal	Sussex County	DE		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Louisville and Portland Canal	Louisville	KY
Matagorda Ship Channel	Matagorda County	TX
McClellan–Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System		AR
McClellan–Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System	Eastern Oklahoma	OK
Ogden Slip	Chicago	IL
Okeechobee Waterway	South Florida	FL
Oswego Canal	Oswego County	NY
Point Pleasant Canal	Point Pleasant	NJ		Part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Port Townsend Ship Canal	Jefferson County	WA
Portage Lake Canal	Houghton County	MI		Part of Keweenaw Waterway
Sabine–Neches Waterway	Southeast Texas	TX
Sabine–Neches Waterway	Calcasieu Parish	LA
Sacramento Deep Water Ship Channel	Solano County, Yolo County	CA
Smith Canal	Stockton	CA
St. Clair Flats Canal	Clay Township	MI
St. Lawrence Seaway	Jefferson County, St. Lawrence County	NY		Spans into Canada
St. Lucie Canal	Martin County	FL		Part of the Okeechobee Waterway
Stockton Channel	Stockton	CA
Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel	San Joaquin County, Contra Costa County	CA
Shinnecock Canal	Hampton Bays	NY
St. Marys Falls Canal	Sault Ste. Marie	MI		Part of the Great Lakes Waterway
Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal	Door County	WI
Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway	Northeast Mississippi	MS
Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway	Southwest Alabama	AL
Victoria Barge Canal	Victoria County, Calhoun County	TX	35 mi
West Neebish Channel	Chippewa County	MI		Part of the Great Lakes Waterway
Wiley-Dondero Canal	St. Lawrence County	NY		Part of the St. Lawrence Seaway

The United States also built the Panama Canal on territory it controlled.

Abandoned transportation canals

Name	State	Opened	Closed	Length	Notes
Alexandria Canal	VA	1843	1886
Bald Eagle and Spring Creek Navigation	PA	1837	1865
Baillie-Grohman Canal	WA	1889	1902?
Bank's Canal	VA
Beardstown and Sangamon Canal	IL
Beaver and Erie Canal	PA	1844	1872		Part of the Pennsylvania Canal
Bellows Falls Canal	VT	1802	1858
Black River Canal	NY	1855	1925
Blackstone Canal	RI	1828	1848
Blackstone Canal	MA	1828	1848
Brunswick–Altamaha Canal	GA	1854	1860
Cascade Locks and Canal	OR	1896	1938
Cascade Locks and Canal	WA	1896	1938
Celilo Canal	OR	1915	1957
Celilo Canal	WA	1915	1957
Chemung Canal	NY	1833	1878
Chenango Canal	NY	1836	1878
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal	MD	1830	1924
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal	DC	1830	1924
Clinton–Kalamazoo Canal	MI	1843			Partially completed
Codorus Navigation	PA	1832	1850
Colbert Shoals Canal	AL				Flooded by Pickwick Lake
Columbia Canal	SC	1824			Now used for hydroelectic power
Conestoga Navigation	PA	1826
Conewago Canal	PA	1797
Cross Florida Barge Canal	FL				Partially completed
Culpeper Gold Mine Canal	VA
Cumberland and Oxford Canal	ME	1832	1873		Songo Lock remains open
Deep Run Canal	VA
Delaware and Hudson Canal	PA	1828	1917
Delaware and Hudson Canal	NY	1828	1917
Delaware and Raritan Canal	NJ	1834	1932
Delaware Canal	PA	1832	1931		Part of the Pennsylvania Canal
Des Moines Rapids Canal	IA
Enfield Falls Canal	CT	1829
Farmington Canal	CT	1828	1847		Continued into Massachusetts as the Hampshire and Hampden Canal
Ficklin's Canal	VA
Fox–Wisconsin Waterway	WI				Partially restored
Franklin Line	PA	1833	1837		Part of the Pennsylvania Canal
Fredericksburg Canal	VA
Genesee Valley Canal	NY	1840	1878
Hampshire and Hampden Canal	MA		1847		Continued into Connecticut as the Farmington Canal
Hennepin Canal	IL	1907
Hocking Canal	OH	1841	1890
Illinois and Michigan Canal	IL	1848	1933
Indiana Central Canal	IN				Partially completed
James River and Kanawha Canal	VA				Only Virginia portion completed
Junction Canal	PA	1854	1871
Junction Canal	NY	1854	1871
Landsford Canal	SC	1823
Lehigh Canal	PA	1821	1942		A mule-drawn tourist barge operates at the National Canal Museum
Leiper Canal	PA	1829	1852
Love Canal	NY
Main Line of Public Works	PA
Miami Canal	FL
Miami and Erie Canal	OH	1844	1913
Middlesex Canal	MA	1803	1851
Milan Canal	OH	1839	1868
Mississippi River–Gulf Outlet Canal	LA	1968	2009
Morris Canal	NJ	1829	1924
Muscle Shoals Canal	AL				Drowned under Wilson Lake?
Ohio and Erie Canal	OH	1827	1913
Patowmack Canal	MD	1795	1828		Consists of the Little Falls Canal, Great Falls Canal, Seneca Falls Canal, Payne's Falls Canal, and House Falls Canal
Patowmack Canal	VA	1795	1828		Consists of the Little Falls Canal, Great Falls Canal, Seneca Falls Canal, Payne's Falls Canal, and House Falls Canal
Pawtucket Canal	MA	1796
Pennsylvania Canal	PA
Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal	PA	1840	1877
Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal	OH	1840	1877
Portage Canal	WI	1876	1951
Powell's Canal	VA
Rapidan Dam Canal of the Rappahannock Navigation	VA
Sandy and Beaver Canal	PA	1848	1852
Sandy and Beaver Canal	OH	1848	1852
Santee Canal	SC	1800	1865
Savannah Ogeechee Canal	GA
Schuylkill Navigation	PA	1825	1931
Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company	PA
Delaware and Schuylkill Navigation Company	PA
Skinker's Canal	VA
Snake Castle Canal	VA
South Hadley Canal	MA	1795
Spring Valley Canal	VA
Susquehanna Canal	MD	1802	1840
Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal	PA	1840	1894
Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal	MD	1840	1894
Suwannee Canal	GA
Taylor's Canal	VA
Union Canal	PA	1828	1885
Wabash and Erie Canal	OH	1843	1874
Wabash and Erie Canal	IN	1843	1874
Walhonding Canal	OH	1842	1896
Warren County Canal	OH	1840	1848
Washington City Canal	DC	1815
Wheatley's Canal	VA
Whitewater Canal	IN	1839
Wiconisco Canal	PA	1845	1889

Irrigation, industrial, and drainage canals

Alaska

Davidson Ditch

Arizona

California

Florida

Louisiana

Massachusetts

Michigan

Edison Sault Power Canal

Montana

Nebraska

Loup Canal

New Jersey

Texas

Washington

Natural inlets called canals

Behm Canal, Duncan Canal, Lynn Canal, and Portland Canal in Alaska, and Hood Canal in Washington are natural inlets that use the name canal.

Canals by state

These are man made canals in each state that have been given a name and may consist of a narrow irrigation or drainage ditch to a large ship, municipal water and/or irrigation canal. States with extensive agricultural acreage may have many hundred to thousands of canals. USGS Topographical map numbers and latitudes and longitudes of each canal, usable as inputs into Google, Bing, etc. maps, are usually given.