GLENVILLE, N.Y. (AP) — Two centuries after New York Gov. DeWitt Clinton opened the Erie Canal with a triumphant boat trip from Buffalo to New York City, a brightly painted replica of the vessel is slowly retracing the historic journey through the waterway and down the Hudson River.
A few things have changed since 1825.
The replica Seneca Chief is being helped along by a tugboat, not by horses or mules. The once chest-deep waterway between Albany and Buffalo has been enlarged. Much of the original route has been changed. And barges have largely given way to pleasure boats and kayaks.
But the 73-foot (22-meter) wooden boat is a floating reminder of a time when the Erie Canal helped hasten westward expansion in the United States. The Seneca Chief has made more than two dozen stops in the past month to welcome visitors aboard.
“When you step on this boat, you’re really going to be transported to a time when these boats ran all throughout these waters,” Buffalo Maritime Center executive director Brian Trzeciak said during a recent break at a lock near Schenectady.
“There are people that weren’t even sure if the Erie Canal still exists that are now seeing this boat and asking more questions about our history. So those moments are the best when we pull into those ports.”
More than 200 volunteers helped the Maritime Center construct the boat, which cleared the canal last week. The Seneca Chief is heading south on the Hudson River with plans to dock in Manhattan this weekend.
Clinton was the driving force behind the construction of the 363-mile (584-kilometer) canal between Albany and Buffalo. The massive project took eight years and was derided by critics as “Clinton's Folly.” But the Erie Canal proved its worth almost immediately. It dramatically cut down travel time for passengers to the Great Lakes. Shipping costs for lumber, wheat and flour plummeted, and sleepy settlements along the route grew into thriving cities.
The original Seneca Chief led a flotilla of boats out of Buffalo on Oct. 26, 1825. The publicity savvy governor ended the trip Nov. 4 by pouring a keg of Lake Erie water into the Atlantic Ocean, creating a "wedding of the waters."
Inspired by Clinton, the contemporary Seneca Chief crew is gathering water from stops along the canal and the Hudson River. The crew is also planting white pine trees along the way in a symbolic tribute to the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois, who lived in the region long before white settlers arrived.
The water is being stored in a barrel on the Seneca Chief and will be used the nourish the last tree planted in Manhattan.
The Seneca Chief travels down the Mohawk River, Oct. 21, 2025, in Glenville, N.Y., commemorating New York Gov. DeWitt Clinton's inaugural 1825 journey along the Erie Canal. (AP Photo/Michael Hill)
The Seneca Chief travels down the Mohawk River, Oct. 21, 2025, in Glenville, N.Y., commemorating New York Gov. DeWitt Clinton's inaugural 1825 journey along the Erie Canal. (AP Photo/Michael Hill)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado met with U.S. President Donald Trump, presenting him with her Nobel Peace Prize medal and praising his support for Venezuelan democracy, even as Trump has signaled a willingness to work with the country’s acting president.
As Machado was in Washington, acting President Delcy Rodríguez delivered her first state of the union address in Caracas, calling for reforms to Venezuela’s state-run oil industry aimed at attracting foreign investment following the removal of former President Nicolás Maduro. The former vice president also outlined a distinct vision for the future between the two historic adversaries, straying from her predecessors, who have long railed against American intervention in Venezuela.
This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
Military leaders arrive at the National Assembly where acting President Delcy Rodriguez addresses lawmakers in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
National Assembly lawmaker Nicolas Maduro Guerra, son of deposed President Nicolas Maduro, and his wife Grysell Torres arrive at the National Assembly for Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez first state of the union address in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez delivers her first state of the union address at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez addresses lawmakers next to a picture of former President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez arrives at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, center, National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, left, and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello arrive at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado greets supporters on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House after meeting with President Donald Trump Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado reaches out to embrace Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, left, as the Nobel Peace Prize recipient meets with Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., right, and others two weeks after President Donald Trump toppled Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in a stunning military raid, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado arrives at the Capitol, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, left, leaving the White House in Washington, after meeting with President Donald Trump Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, center, leaves the Capitol, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado is welcomed as she arrives for meetings in the office of Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
