The Hamburg Canal mentioned in the Texan Steer piece sits pretty squarely
in the city of Buffalo, emptying into Lake Erie, whereas the town of
Hamburg, where Thorn lived, is 15 miles to the south and east, and is still
prime farmland, so if there is a connection to Thorn/Hy Slocum, it's not a
very clear one.

There is a short article on the Hamburg Canal nuisance and some of the
Aldermanic doings in the Express of 8 Feb 1870, p 4, col 4:

http://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/lccn/sn83030921/1870-02-08/ed-1/seq-4/#date1=01%2F01%2F1869&index=9&date2=01%2F31%2F1874&searchType=advanced&SearchType=phrase&sequence=0&words=CANAL+HAMBURG&proxdistance=&to_year=1874&rows=20&ortext=&from_year=1869&proxtext=&phrasetext=hamburg+canal&andtext=&dateFilterType=range&page=1

Leslie