The Delaware and Hudson Canal

History a British blockade preceding the War of 1812 cut off the supply of imported bituminous coal led to the commercial development of Pennsylvania’s anthracite coal fields. But transporting the anthracite from the mines to coastal markets was a problem; a water route would be required given the weight of the coal and the poor condition of the roads.

The 108-mile 108-lock waterway operated from 1828 until 1898 transforming the economic landscape, as towns and villages sprang up along its route, and industries developed to exploit local resources such as lumber, agricultural products, and bluestone. The discovery of natural cement near High Falls in 1825 spawned the Rosendale cement industry, whose product was widely used in construction projects, including the Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty.

The Story of Mobility in America

Maritime Museums in Historic Towns

The High Falls - 16 through 20 - five locks were built in 1847, as part of a new route designed to accommodate increased traffic and larger canal boats.  This section also included a loading quay, still visible just past lock 16. The canal locks were constructed of Shawangunk conglomerate, an indigenous stone.  Each lock measured 90’ long, 15’ wide, and 15’ deep, and provided an average change in elevation of 12.6’. A leader in 19^th century technology, the D&H Canal Company is associated with such innovations as:

the D&H Gravity Railroad designed by John Jervis to transport coal over a mountainous region;

Wire suspension aqueduct by John Roebling, a technology he later used in the Brooklyn Bridge;

Anthracite Canals created a steady supply of inexpensive coal—which then fueled America’s Industrial Revolution. Steam-powered factories burned anthracite coal, and began to manufacture products such as glass, earthenware, beer and spirits, replacing the work of artisans.

The D&H Canal Historical Society maintains a Canal Museum and Five Locks Walk trail to preserve canal-era artifacts, and document the canal’s creation, operation, and importance as an engine of economic development in the region and beyond.

Connect for Travel to High Falls New York and the Delaware & Hudson Canal

Delaware & Lehigh Trail Walk Bike Cruise

165 miles of nature history preservation recreation and education

From its origins as a means to transport anthracite coal from the mines of Luzerne and Carbon County to the markets in the Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia, the D&L Trail is now a multi-use trail originating from the mountains of northeast Pennsylvania through the rivers and communities of the Lehigh Valley and Bucks County.

A Trail that Connects People to Unique Environmental and Community Experiences

Visiting the National Canal Museum, cruising aboard the Josiah White II, walking and riding your bike on the canal towpaths are among the ways to explore the Lehigh Valley and the 60-mile long National Historic Landmark located within Delaware Canal State Park in Bucks and Northampton counties.

Conversations on the Canal are dinner cruises that focus on the major ethnic groups in the D&L Corridor and why they came to America. Learn about the Ulster Scots, the first immigrants from the island known in Gaelic as Éire, who became known as Scots-Irish in North America.  An estimated 200,000 Ulster Scots left for the American colonies during the 1700s thanks to Pennsylvania’s tradition of religious tolerance. Between 1815 and 1834, a second wave of nearly 400 thousand immigrants also came here.

A Vision for the Delaware Canal the idea to construct a pedestrian bridge across the Lehigh River at Jim Thorpe was first conceived in the D&L’s 1992 Management Action Plan.  After countless steps from concept to design to funding and then re-funding, the bridge is the critical connector linking 40 miles of trail located north of Jim Thorpe to the Lehigh Valley.   Just south of Jim Thorpe, two separate but integral projects will make the connection between Carbon County and Lehigh County smooth and safe.  They include plans for a retaining wall and improved towpath trail between Jim Thorpe and Weissport in Lehigh Canal Park.   

Wineries and Breweries the Lehigh Valley is home to a Wine Trail and an Ale Trail. Selected bars and pubs have upwards of 60% of their taps consistently dedicated to craft beers. The local products can also be tasted while cruising the canal.

The Coal Iron Steel and Canals of the Delaware and Lehigh Valleys

The Delaware & Lehigh five county-region of Northeastern Pennsylvania developed in the late 18^th Century as-a-result of the anthracite mines, the iron and steel industries, and the canals that were built to reach Philadelphia and other markets.

Book Your Walk Bike and Cruise D&L Itinerary Here!

Travel Duration 3 nights and 4 days. Group Size Minimum 4, Maximum 50 persons.

Cost/Person USD 735 for adults age 19 to 64 USD 585 for seniors 65+ and children under 18.

Information for Booking First and Last Name, Passport Number, Expiration date and Issuing country, Date of birth, Email address.

Included Travel between cities and states that are part of the itinerary, 3 lunches and dinners, accommodations in double occupancy with breakfast for ten nights, applicable local and state taxes, 3 one-half day sightseeing events, local transport services.

Excluded Evening entertainment and transport to tour location start and from tour ending location.

Day/time Day to day programs and specific events at each location, as well as the sequence of the tour stops, will be finalized with the participation of the clients after details on family/group composition have been determined to take-into-account client priorities and preferences.

Reductions Children under the age of 18 and seniors over the age of 65 traveling with parents and/or guardians, staying in the same hotel room receive a 20 percent discount.

Land People and History the Lenape of the Delaware Valley hunted deer, grew grains and vegetables, and caught seafood along the coast.  The Lehigh Valley was of great importance because it was one of their main east-west pathways, intersecting with major north-south aboriginal trails in the Delaware Valley. Despite its prominence as a crossroads, the Great Valley was the site of few permanent villages, although they often camped at the confluence of the Lehigh and Delaware rivers in what is now Easton.
The first Europeans in the Lehigh Valley were Scots-Irish who followed the Saucon and Indian creeks and established settlements in today’s Northampton County. Large numbers of Germans came into the Lehigh Valley in the 1730s.  Among them were the Schwenkfelders from Saxony and Mennonites, known for their skills as craftsmen and millers, and for establishing schools.  Most of the Germans became known as Pennsylvania Dutch and grew maize, squash, wheat and livestock. At least 50 different nations and ethnic groups have been identified among the immigrants of the 1800s; many arrived at Ellis Island and traveled straight to the Lehigh Valley. Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton thrived by the late 19^th Century.
The Delaware and Lehigh Valleys played a major role during the American Revolution. George Washington’s crossed the Delaware River in 1776, the second reading of Declaration of Independence was held in Easton and the Liberty Bell was hidden from the British here.

The Discovery of Anthracite in 1791, Carbon County set the stage for America’s Industrial Revolution, the founding of small towns, the birth of industrial powerhouses such as Bethlehem Steel and the development of the Lehigh and Delaware Canals. Also known as stone coal because of its rock-like hardness, it appeared atop hills and under valleys in seams or veins up to 12 feet thick. Industries involving iron, steel, Portland cement and zinc processing flourished, followed by tanneries, silk and textile mills. These raw materials led to commercial, transportation and cultural opportunities along a 165-mile route through the Wyoming, Lehigh and Delaware Valleys.

Transportation and Communications the Lehigh River carved a trail that would eventually become the backbone of future transportation routes. Footpaths along the river banks gave way to canals, then to railroads, and finally to modern-day highways. Nowhere is this more apparent than at Lehigh Gap, a dramatic landscape where the Lehigh River breaks through Blue Mountain, also known as Kittatiny Ridge, the final ridge in the Appalachian chain. The Delaware Canal was built during the early 19^th Century from Easton to Bristol on the Delaware River fostering development of textile mills such as the Grundy complex, steel mills like the Fairless Works and planned suburban community like Levittown. Completion of the Lehigh Canal further accelerated development of the Valley.

The 1862 floods destroyed all the dams, locks and canal boats and coal shipping shifted to railroads.  The Lehigh Valley Railroad, which ran through Easton and on to New York City, was the first rail line to have a significant impact. The Lehigh & Susquehanna Railroad and Reading & Pennsylvania Railroad created competition for shipping coal and other goods. The Delaware Canal was a transport link with limited industrial impact on the rural, farm region it flowed through.

Culture and The Environment in more recent times, the region has been in the forefront of land conservation, historic preservation and an arts movement that celebrates land and landscapes. The local culture draws from the Moravian settlements experience in which all men were equal, hence a unique and broad cultural environment in which music, art, education and religious tolerance flourished, as shown in the communal dwellings, churches and industrial structures in Bethlehem and Nazareth.