Johnny Appleseed of the Ohio and Erie Canal

By LEE WARD / THE INDEPENDENT

PORTSMOUTH October 03, 2008 11:05 am

— Jeff Maximovich has done something that, perhaps, no one else has done. He has walked the full length of the Ohio and Erie Canal.
The 52-year-old Canton, Ohio, resident will be the guest at the Scioto County Canal Society’s final celebration of the 175th anniversary of the opening of the canal.
Q: Are you the only person to have walked the entire length of the canal?
A: I know that no one else has pulled this long walk off since the closing of the Ohio and Erie Canal in 1913. The last ones who did carry it out were the young boys who were called “Mule Skinners or Hoggee.” They were the ones who walked alongside the mules, keeping them moving along. I can say with confidence that only I, to date, have retraced the entire towpath from Cleveland to Portsmouth, all 308 miles. Others had made some marvelous discoveries as well. Linn Loomis from Newcomerstown and Terry Woods from Canton, Ohio, are fantastic explorers, to say the least. Both are authors of books about our canal systems. I felt enlightened when they ask me if I ever found certain sites, which I had.
Q: How did you get interested in the canal?
A: Up until I was eight years old, I never heard of the canals. At that age, in 1964, my grandfather passed and I stayed with my grandma who lives near to Summit Lake in the Akron area. Summit Lake was on the Portage water Summit and was a holding tank for the boats coming in and leaving the Akron area. At 8 years of age, I was oblivious to such technical information. During that summer, I often ventured to the shores of Summit Lake and got acquainted with an elder gentleman who filled my head with his adventures as a young boy playing the Ohio and Erie Canal. I couldn’t wait to hear him and often my grandma packed him a lunch and I made my way there. He told me about places like the Circleville Aqueduct, the Millport area and Massillon. His descriptions were almost fairy tale, and my imagination went on overload. As a young boy and growing up into a man, his stories stuck like glue and they never left my mind. I often thought of the old man who just vanished, but remembered every word he bestowed in me. As I began walking the canal several years ago, I heard his old crackling voice all over again; everything he had previously told me was exactly as he said it would be. Looking back, I would say he was in his 90s in 1964. He never knew the impact he had on me, he would be proud to know.
Q: How long did it take you to make the walk?
A: I walked the canal for several years in part. In 2005, I prepared and set out and walked all 300 miles; it took about 160 hours to complete the journey. I broke it up in five parts starting, on Fridays and returning home Sunday evening. During the time out there, I stayed on the old towpath trail. In preparation for this journey, I preset food and water about 5 to 10 miles apart, depending how hard the area was to get through. Having my food and water waiting was the boost I needed. It pushed me on, being always hungry and thirsty, I didn’t have to carry the load. I kept a GPS and a phone for safety reasons; it often failed in the deep woods.
Q: Did you have any interesting or strange events happen during your walk?
A: The strangest encounters were within the deep gorge the Licking River passes through; the Ohio and Erie Canal laid low in through there along the river. My conclusions about that particular place are as follows: the Black Hand Gorge of Licking County is spooked. I personally renamed a hidden-away lock deep in the gorge “Spooky Lock.” I had strange experiences in there and even stumbled across a body in a lawn and leaf bag. This area had its lingering effects, I feel, brought on by the war that broke out in the 1820s between the canal diggers and the local Indian Tribes who lived along the Licking River. I always felt as if I was being watched. I took many pictures, which revealed an Indian standing in front of the lenses, as crazy as it may sound. He looked angry, and scared me to death. Whatever it was came back to Canton, continually haunting me at home. I took the pictures to a local church after the disturbances this unwanted visitor was stirring up. After viewing them, I was advised to burn them. He, my visitor never really left, only because he reveals himself from time to time. Stories like that are what the Ohio historians jumped on and tried to belittle me over — discrediting my work. ...I won’t take back any of (back). I told it the way it happened.
Q. What about the book you wrote about your experience?
A: The book is called “The Johnny Appleseed of the Ohio and Erie Canal” and can be found on line at most book stores by ordering. My book was attacked by the established canal associations who at first gave me plenty of unnecessary problems. But through time, they figured out I knew my business. I found sites that they thought were gone, only because not too many of them really got out there at the extent that I have. I found locks and sites that were right under their noses. I apologize if I seem smug. I’m currently working on a more technical version of another book. This book will be formed around the people’s questions and answers. It’s unfolding now and can be viewed by going to my site — thejohnnyappleseedoftheohioeriecanal.com — and clicking on Canal Stories.
LEE WARD can be reached at lward@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2661.

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