The Volunteer is a 76-foot replica

Ship replica

A ship replica is a reconstruction of a no longer existing ship. Replicas can range from authentically reconstructed, fully seaworthy ships, to ships of modern construction that give an impression of an historic vessel...

 of a 19th Century canal boat

Canal boat

There are three articles associated with canal watercraft:* The Volunteer - A replica 1848 canal boat docked on the Illinois and Michigan Canal at LaSalle, Illinois* Narrowboat - a specialized craft for operation in early narrow canals...

 which is owned and operated by the Canal Corridor Association. The Volunteer operates on a restored section of the Illinois and Michigan Canal

Illinois and Michigan Canal

The Illinois and Michigan Canal ran from the Bridgeport neighborhood in Chicago on the Chicago River to LaSalle-Peru, Illinois, on the Illinois River. It was finished in 1848 when Chicago Mayor James Hutchinson Woodworth presided over its opening; and it allowed boat transportation from the Great...

 at LaSalle, Illinois.

Construction

The boat was built in Albany, New York

Albany, New York

Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...

 by Scarano Boat Builders at a cost of $993,840. The Volunteer was designed to resemble an original canal boat; however, the hull of The Volunteer is constructed out of aluminum and the upper portion is built of rot resistant white cedar

White Cedar

White Cedar may refer to several different trees:* Cupressaceae:** Chamaecyparis thyoides – Atlantic White Cypress** Cupressus lusitanica – Mexican White Cedar** Thuja occidentalis – Eastern Arborvitae* Meliaceae:...

. The use of these non-traditional materials was intended to help make the boat easy to maintain and increase the vessel's life.

The Boat Ride

The Volunteer takes up to 75 passengers on hour-long round trip journeys on a small segment of the 96 mile Illinois and Michigan Canal. While headed east from its dock at Lock 14, The Volunteer is pulled by two mule

Mule

A mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse. Horses and donkeys are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes. Of the two F1 hybrids between these two species, a mule is easier to obtain than a hinny...

s named "Moe" and "Larry", and a goat named "Curly" that walk along the adjacent towpath

Towpath

A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge...

. The names are supposed to represent the names from the popular TV show, The Three Stooges. The captain steers the boat by hand with the large wooden rudder

Rudder

A rudder is a device used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft or other conveyance that moves through a medium . On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw and p-factor and is not the primary control used to turn the airplane...

 at the back of the boat. Along the way an interpreter, dressed in period clothing, explains to passengers the history of the canal and what travel was like in the year 1848. Once the boat reaches the Little Vermilion River aqueduct

Aqueduct

An aqueduct is a water supply or navigable channel constructed to convey water. In modern engineering, the term is used for any system of pipes, ditches, canals, tunnels, and other structures used for this purpose....

, the mules are detached and the boat backs up using its twin 4hp electric motors.

External links

• LaSalle Canal Boat Website, offering information on tours and ticket sales