New York State Comptroller's Office Canal Department Accounts and Returns of Canal Tolls by Railroads

The New York State Canal Department collected tolls on railroad freight on lines parallel to canals until 1851, when the tolls were abolished (L. 1851, Ch. 497). The statistics of railroad freight on which canal tolls were collected are incomplete.

This series consists of bound documents relating to payment of canal tolls by railroads in New York State. Three (later four) forms are included: a monthly account of tolls, giving the name of the railroad, direction of movement, inclusive dates, and information from each way bill, including the date, pounds of freight subject to toll, and amount of toll; a sworn statement of account between the railroad company and the State of New York, giving the date, amounts of canal tolls deposited to credit of the Commissioners of the Canal Fund, signatures of the general superintendent and treasurer of the railroad company, and attestation; a sworn statement by the freight agent of the railroad and collector of canal tolls concerning the amount of tolls accrued and collected, with signatures, date, and attestation; and a monthly statement of the total quantity of products of the forest and agriculture and of manufactured goods (given in pounds, feet, cords, barrels, bushels, or gallons) for each railroad, signed by the company superintendent and the toll collector (available only for 1850-1851).

Railroads include the Utica and Schenectady, Syracuse and Utica, Auburn and Syracuse, Auburn and Rochester, Tonawanda, Attica and Buffalo, Schenectady and Troy, Oswego and Syracuse, Chemung, and the Saratoga and Washington. Dates covered by the four extant volumes are: November 1844-April 1845, December 1847-December 1848, July-December 1850, and January-June 1851. The last two volumes lack title pages.

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