Across the state this weekend, the Erie Canal and its history will be highlighted with a number of events as part of the second NYS Canal Splash.

In Cayuga County, the Old Brutus Museum, in Weedsport, will be getting into the action on Saturday with a display of photographs of the canal, said museum historian Jeanne Baker. Old canal music will also fill the air around the museum for the day.

“Generally, (photographs) of the early Erie Canal as it went through Weedsport (will be displayed),” Baker said, although there will also be pictures from the canal as a whole, and what life was like inside the canal boats.

The main event of the day, however, will be the dedication of the mural that adorns the north side of the museum.

“We'll introduce the benefactor that paid for the mural and explain it as to the location and the people featured in it,” Baker said.

That benefactor is Jean Carrington, and the reason she paid for it is because her great grandfather, George Ray, and all his descendants worked on the canal, she said.

The mural not only includes many of Carrington's descendants, but the artist also put Carrington in an early 1900s long dress standing on the main bridge in Weedsport at the time, Baker said. A barge and tugboat are going under the bridge.

“We had a big blank wall that is now covered with this beautiful color mural,” Baker said.

For a complete schedule of NYS Canal Splash events, visit www.johnnymilleradventures.com.

If you go

What: NYS Canal Splash

When: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday; Mural dedication at 1 p.m.

Where: Old Brutus Museum, Weedsport

Cost: Free

For details: Call 834-6285