1820 | Transportation
Transportation
Connecticut architect Ithiel Town, now 36, obtains a patent for a truss bridge (see first Vermont covered bridge, 1824).
The first modern concrete to be produced in America advances construction of the Erie Canal. Oneida, New York-born engineer Canvass White, 30, patents the hydraulic use of cement made from "hydraulic lime" found in New York's Madison, Cayuga, and Onondaga counties (see technology [portland cement], 1824).
Regent's Canal opens at London August 1 after a decade of construction to link the Grand Junction Canal's Paddington branch around the city to Limehouse. Work began in 1812 but was interrupted when funds were embezzled: the eight-and-a-half-mile waterway has cost £772,000 (twice the original estimate), has two tunnels, 12 locks, and in its first year carries 120,000 tons of cargo.