Editing Ship canal

{{Short description|Canal intended to accommodate ships used on the oceans, seas, or lakes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
[[File:Panama Canal Gatun Locks.jpg|250px|thumb|The [[Panama Canal]], a shortcut from the Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Sea, bypassing a circumnavigation of the Americas]]
[[File:SuezCanal-EO.JPG|250px|thumb|The [[Suez Canal]], a shortcut from the Mediterranean to the [[Red Sea]], bypassing a circumnavigation of Africa]]

A '''ship canal''' is a [[canal]] especially intended to accommodate ships used on the oceans, seas, or lakes to which it is connected.{{sfn|Johnson's''|1883|p=1660}}

== Definition ==

Ship canals can be distinguished from barge canals, which are intended to carry [[barge]]s and other vessels specifically designed for river and/or canal navigation. Ships capable of navigating large bodies of open water typically have more draft, and are higher above the water than vessels for inland navigation. A ship canal therefore typically offers deeper water and higher bridge clearances than a barge canal suitable for vessels of similar length and width constraints.{{sfn|Finch|1925|p=11}}

Ship canals may be specially constructed from the start to accommodate ships, or less frequently they may be enlarged barge canals or ''canalized '' or [[channel (geography)|channelized rivers]]. There are no specific minimum dimensions for ship canals, with the size being largely dictated by the size of ships in use nearby at the time of construction or enlargement.{{sfn|Engineering News|1897|p=317,320}}

Ship canals may be constructed for a number of reasons, including:

# To create a shortcut and avoid lengthy detours.
# To create a navigable shipping link between two land-locked seas or lakes.
# To provide inland cities with a direct shipping link to the sea.
# To provide an economical alternative to other options.

== History ==
Early canals were connected with natural rivers, either as short extensions or improvements to them.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of canals in Great Britain |url=http://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/history/ukcanals.htm |access-date=30 October 2018 |website=www.canalmuseum.org.uk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191008231211/https://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/history/ukcanals.htm |archive-date=8 October 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

One of the first canals built was the [[Grand Canal of China]], which was developed over a long period starting in the 5th century BCE.{{sfn|Harrington|1974|p=11}} In the modern era, canals in the United Kingdom are typically associated with the [[Duke of Bridgewater]], who hired the engineer [[James Brindley]] and had the first canal (the [[Bridgewater Canal]]) built that ran over a flowing river.<ref name="HLS">{{Cite news |title=Canals 1750 to 1900 – History Learning Site |work=History Learning Site |url=https://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/britain-1700-to-1900/transport-1750-to-1900/canals-1750-to-1900/ |access-date=30 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181030170352/https://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/britain-1700-to-1900/transport-1750-to-1900/canals-1750-to-1900/ |archive-date=30 October 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In the United States, the canal that brought about an age of canal building was the [[Erie Canal]]. It was a long-sought-after canal and connected the [[Great Lakes]] to the [[Hudson River]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Canal Era |url=http://www.ushistory.org/us/25a.asp |access-date=30 October 2018 |website=www.ushistory.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307205214/http://www.ushistory.org/us/25a.asp |archive-date=7 March 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> This canal initiated a half-century-long boom of canal building and brought about many new features that allowed canals to be used in different areas previously inaccessible to canals. These features include locks, which allow a ship to move between different altitudes, and [[puddling (civil engineering)|puddling]], which waterproofed the canal.<ref name="HLS" />

== Notable ship canals ==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Canal name
! Year<br />opened
! Length
! Maximum ship length<br />x [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] x [[Draft (hull)|draft]] (m)
! Start point
! End point
|-
| [[White Sea–Baltic Canal]] || 1933 || {{convert|227|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 135 x 14.3 x 4  || {{flagu|Russia}}: [[Lake Onega]] || [[White Sea]] in [[Belomorsk]]
|-
| [[Rhine–Main–Danube Canal]] || 1992 || {{convert|171|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 190 x 11 x 4 || {{flagu|Germany}}: [[Main (river)|Main]] at [[Bamberg]] || [[Danube]] at [[Kelheim]]
|-
| [[Suez Canal]] || 1869 || {{convert|193.3|km|mi|abbr=on}} || Unlimited x 78 x 20 || {{flag|Egypt}}: [[Port Said]] || [[Port Tewfik]]
|-
| [[Volga–Don Canal]] || 1952 || {{convert|101|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 141 x 17 x 4 || {{flagu|Russia}}: [[Volgograd]] || [[Tsimlyansk Reservoir]]
|-
| [[Kiel Canal]] || 1895 || {{convert|98|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 310 x 42 x 14 || {{flagu|Germany}}: [[Brunsbüttel]] || [[Kiel]]
|-
| [[Houston Ship Channel]] || 1914 || {{convert|80|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 305 x 161 x 14 || {{flagu|United States}}: [[Houston]] || [[Gulf of Mexico]]
|-
| [[Panama Canal]] || 1914 || {{convert|77|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 366 x 49 x 15 || {{flag|Panama}}: Caribbean || Pacific Ocean
|-
| [[Danube–Black Sea Canal]] || 1984 || {{convert|64.4|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 138 x 17 x 6 || {{flag|Romania}}: [[Danube]] at [[Cernavodă]] || [[Black Sea]] at [[Agigea]]
|-
| [[Manchester Ship Canal]] || 1894 || {{convert|58|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 183 x 20 x 9 || {{flagu|United Kingdom}}: [[Eastham, Merseyside|Eastham Locks]] || [[Salford Quays]]
|-
| [[Welland Canal]] || 1932 || {{convert|43.4|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 226 x 24 x 8 || {{flagu|Canada}}: [[Lake Ontario]] at [[Port Weller, Ontario|Port Weller]] || [[Lake Erie]] at [[Port Colborne]]
|-
| [[Saint Lawrence Seaway]] || 1959 || {{convert|600|km|mi|abbr=on}} || 226 x 24 x 8 || {{flagu|Canada}}: [[Port Colborne]] || {{flagu|Canada}}: [[Montreal]]
|}

== Navigability ==
The standard used in the [[European Union]] for classifying the navigability of inland waterways is the ''European Agreement on Main Inland Waterways of International Importance (AGN)'' of 1996, adopted by The Inland Transport Committee of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), which defines the following classes:<ref name="agn-classes">{{Cite web|title=European Agreement on the main Inland Waterways of international importance (AGN) |url=http://untreaty.un.org/unts/144078_158780/9/5/2638.pdf |publisher=United Nations |volume=2072, I-35939 |page=343 |access-date=30 November 2008}}{{dead link|date=May 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=UNECE Homepage |url=http://www.unece.org/info/ece-homepage.html |access-date=15 June 2020 |website=www.unece.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200515122842/http://www.unece.org/info/ece-homepage.html |archive-date=15 May 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
! Class     || Tonnage (t) || Draught (m) || Length (m) || Width (m) || Air draught (m) || Description
|-
| Class III ||         1,000 ||         ||         ||           ||             ||
|-
| Class IV  ||   1,000–1,500 ||     2.5 ||   80–85 ||       9.5 ||     5.2–7.0 || Johann Welker<ref name="agn-classes" />
|-
| Class Va  ||   1,500–3,000 || 2.5–2.8 ||  95–110 ||      11.4 || 5.2–7.0–9.1 || Large Rhine<ref name="agn-classes" />
|-
| Class VIb ||  6,400–12,000 ||     3.9 ||     140 ||        15 ||         9.1 || <ref name="agn-classes" />
|-
| Class VII || 14,500–27,000 || 2.5–4.5 || 275–285 || 33.0–34.2 ||         9.1 || <ref name="agn-classes" />
|}

== See also ==
{{Portal|Geography|Transport}}
{{Div col}}
* [[Glossary of nautical terms (A–L)]]
* [[Glossary of nautical terms (M–Z)]]
* [[Great Lakes Waterway]]
* [[Lake freighter]]
* [[Merchant ship]]
* [[Navigability]]
* [[Maritime transport]]
* [[Watercraft]]
* [[Waterway]]
{{Div col end}}
<!-- please keep entries in alphabetical order -->

== References ==
* {{cite book |title=Johnson's New Universal Cyclopædia |author1=Frederick Augustus Porter|author2=Barnard, Arnold Guyot |publisher=A. J. Johnson & Company |year=1883 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HFpRAAAAYAAJ |access-date=15 June 2020 |page=1160  |ref={{sfnref|''Johnson's''|1883}} }}
* {{cite book |last=Finch |first=Roy |title=The Story of the New York State Canals |year=1925 |type=booklet |url=https://history.nycourts.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/finch_history.pdf |page=11 |access-date=15 June 2020}}
* {{cite book |page=317,320 |year=1897 |title=Engineering News and American Railway Journal |publisher=Engineering News Publishing Company |hdl=2027/uc1.e0000401679?urlappend=%3Bseq=380 |url=https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.e0000401679?urlappend=%3Bseq=380 |access-date=15 June 2020 |ref={{sfnref|''Engineering News''|1897}}}}
* {{cite book |last=Harrington |first=L. |title=The Grand Canal of China |publisher=Bailey and Swinfen |year=1974 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8lQwAAAAMAAJ |access-date=4 July 2020 |page=11|isbn=9780561002163 }}

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|2}}

== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline|Canals}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Coastal construction]]
[[Category:Ship canals| ]]
[[Category:Shipping|Canal]]
[[Category:Water transport]]
[[Category:Canals]]