The Delaware and Hudson Canal was the first venture of the

Delaware and Hudson Canal Company The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) is a railroad that operates in the Northeastern United States. In 1991, after more than 150 years as an independent railroad, the D&H was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). CP operates D&H ...

, which would later build the

Delaware and Hudson Railway The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) is a railroad that operates in the Northeastern United States. In 1991, after more than 150 years as an independent railroad, the D&H was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). CP operates D&H ...

. Between 1828 and 1899, the canal's

barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...

s carried

anthracite coal Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the high ...

from the mines of

northeastern Pennsylvania Northeastern Pennsylvania (NEPA) is a geographic region of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains, and the industrial cities of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Hazleton, Nanticoke, and Carbon ...

to the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

and thence to market in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Construction of the canal involved some major feats of

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...

, and resulted in the development of some new technologies, particularly in

rail transport Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a p ...

. Its operation stimulated the city's growth and encouraged settlement in the sparsely populated region. Unlike many other canals of that era, the canal remained a profitable private operation for most of its existence. The canal was declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1968. The canal was abandoned during the early 20th century, and much of it was subsequently drained and filled. Some fragments remain in New York and Pennsylvania.

History

Before the canal

During the early 19th century,

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

businessman William Wurts often would leave his affairs for weeks at a time to explore the then-sparsely populated

northeastern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

part of Pennsylvania. He began noticing, mapping, and researching blackish rock outcroppings, becoming the first explorer of the

anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...

fields that have since become known as the

Coal Region The Coal Region is a region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is known for being home to the largest known deposits of anthracite, anthracite coal in the world with an estimated reserve of seven billion short tons. The region is typically define ...

. He believed they could be a valuable energy source, and brought samples back to Philadelphia for testing. Coal anthracite

Eventually, he convinced his brothers

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

and Maurice to come along with him and see for themselves. Starting in 1812, they began buying and mining large tracts of inexpensive land. They were able to extract several tons of anthracite at a time, but lost most of what they tried to bring back to Philadelphia due to the treacherous waterways that were the main method of transportation in the interior. While the southern reaches of the Coal Region were already beginning to supply Philadelphia, they realized that the areas they had been exploring and mining were well-positioned to deliver coal to

, which had experienced an energy shortage after the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, when restrictions were placed on the import of British coal. Inspired by the new and successful

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

, they conceptualized a canal of their own from Pennsylvania to New York, through the narrow valley between the

Shawangunk Ridge The Shawangunk Ridge , also known as the Shawangunk Mountains or The Gunks, is a ridge of bedrock in Ulster County, Sullivan County and Orange County in the state of New York, extending from the northernmost point of the border with New Jersey ...

and the

Catskill Mountains The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined as those areas c ...

, to the

near Kingston, a route followed by the

Old Mine Road Old Mine Road is a road in New Jersey and New York said to be one of the oldest continuously used roads in the United States of America. At a length of , it stretches from the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area to the vicinity of Kings ...

, America's first long-distance transportation route. After several years of lobbying by the Wurtses, the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company was chartered by separate laws in the state of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and commonwealth of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

in 1823, allowing William Wurts and his brother Maurice to construct the Delaware and Hudson Canal. The New York law, passed April 23, 1823, incorporated "The President, Managers and Company of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company", and the Pennsylvania law, passed March 13 of the same year, authorized the company "To Improve the Navigation of the

Lackawaxen River The Lackawaxen River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in northeastern Pennsylvania in the United States. The river flows ...

". The company hired

Benjamin Wright Benjamin Wright (October 10, 1770 – August 24, 1842) was an American civil engineer who was chief engineer of the Erie Canal and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. In 1969, the American Society of Civil Engineers declared him the "Father of America ...

, who had engineered the Erie Canal, and his assistant

John B. Jervis John Bloomfield Jervis (December 14, 1795 – January 12, 1885) was an American civil engineer. America's leading consulting engineer of the antebellum era (1820–60), Jervis designed and supervised the construction of five of America's earliest ...

to survey and plan a route. A primary challenge was the elevation difference between the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...

at Lackawaxen and the Hudson at

Rondout Rondout may refer to some places and buildings in the United States: In Illinois: * Rondout, Illinois In New York: *Rondout, New York, a village located on the north side of Rondout Creek near its mouth on the Hudson River in Ulster County *Rondou ...

. Wright's initial estimated cost of $1.2 million was later revised to $1.6 million (in 1825 dollars). To attract investment, the brothers arranged for a demonstration of anthracite at a

Wall Street Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...

coffeehouse A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-ca ...

in January 1825. The reaction was enthusiastic, and the stock oversubscribed within hours.

Construction

Ground was first broken on July 13 of 1825. After three years of labor by 2,500 men, the canal was opened to navigation in October 1828. It began at the

Rondout Creek Rondout Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 tributary of the Hudson River in Ulster and Sullivan counties, New York, United States. It rises on Rock ...

at an area known later as Creeklocks, between Rondout (at the creek's outlet to the

) and Rosendale. From there it proceeded southwest alongside Rondout Creek in the direction upstream to

Ellenville Ellenville is a village within the town of Wawarsing, Ulster County, New York, United States. Its population was 4,135 at the 2010 census. Geography The village of Ellenville is about 90 miles northwest of New York City and 90 miles southwest ...

, continuing through the valley of the Sandburg Creek, Homowack Kill, Basha Kill and down the valley of the

Neversink River The Neversink River (also called Neversink Creek in its upper course) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in southeastern Ne ...

Port Jervis Port Jervis is a city located at the confluence of the Neversink and Delaware rivers in western Orange County, New York, United States, north of the Delaware Water Gap. Its population was 8,775 at the 2020 census. The communities of Deerpark, ...

on the

. From there the canal ran northwest on the New York side of the Delaware River, crossing the river into Pennsylvania at Lackawaxen and running along the north bank of the

Honesdale Honesdale is a borough in and the county seat of Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough's population was 4,458 at the time of the 2020 census. Honesdale is located northeast of Scranton in a rural area that provides many recrea ...

. To get the

from the Wurts' mine in the

Moosic Mountains The Moosic Mountains is a mountain range in northeastern Pennsylvania that stretches from Scranton to Mount Pleasant Township, a distance of roughly 32 miles. The high point of the range is in Jefferson Township, at an elevation of above sea ...

near Carbondale to the canal at Honesdale, the canal company built the

Delaware and Hudson Gravity Railroad A predecessor to the Class I Delaware and Hudson Railway, the 1820s-built Delaware and Hudson Canal Company Gravity Railroad ''('D&H Gravity Railroad')'' was a historic gravity railroad incorporated and chartered in 1826 with land grant rights ...

. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania authorized its construction on April 8, 1826. On August 8, 1829, the D&H's first

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the Power (physics), motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, Motor coach (rail), motor ...

, the ''

Stourbridge Lion The ''Stourbridge Lion'' was a railroad steam locomotive. It was the first foreign built locomotive to be operated in the United States, and one of the first locomotives to operate outside Britain. It takes its name from the lion's face painted ...

'', made history as the first locomotive to run on rails in the United States.

Success and decline

Delaware and Hudson Canal Honesdale basin

Business developed rapidly as the Wurtses had anticipated, and in 1832 the canal carried 90,000 tons (81,000 tonnes) of coal and three million board-feet (7,080 m³) of

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

. The company invested the profits in improving the canal, making it deeper so larger barges could be used. In 1850, the Pennsylvania Coal Company constructed its own

gravity railroad A gravity railroad (American English) or gravity railway (British English) is a railroad on a slope that allows cars carrying minerals or passengers to coast down the slope by the force of gravity alone. The speed of the cars is controlled by a bra ...

from the coal fields to the port at Hawley and the canal enjoyed increased traffic, carrying more than 300,000 tons of PCC coal in the first season. However, the relationship between the two companies deteriorated after the canal attempted to increase tolls with the argument that canal improvements had reduced costs for the PCC. The dispute was decided by court decision in 1863, but by that time the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake Erie ...

constructed its extension to Hawley and the PCC transferred its shipments to the railroad. The D&H was also developing railroads, a technology that was continuing to improve and supplant canal transportation at the time, to extend its access to other Northeastern markets. The D&H also extended its gravity railroad from Carbondale deeper into the coal fields and expanded its capacity. By the time Maurice Wurts died in 1854, the company was reporting profits of 10-24% annually and had completely paid its original debt to both states. The completion of the

through the Delaware Valley in 1848 and its branch to Hawley in 1863 began to effect the canal's business adversely, although it continued to be successful through the 1870s and '80s. During that time canals began to be perceived as quaint relics of pre-industrial times and began yielding to railroads across the country. In 1898, the Delaware and Hudson finally joined them, carrying its last loads from Honesdale to Kingston, as railroads could now carry coal more directly to the city, across New Jersey rather than via Kingston. The next year the company eliminated the word "Canal" from its name, the states authorizing it to abandon the canal if it deemed it suitable and concentrate on its railroad interests, which it did.

Post-closure

After the end of the 1898 season, the company opened all the waste weirs and drained the canal. Catskill railroad magnate Samuel Coykendall purchased the canal the next summer, reportedly to benefit the

Ramapo Water Company Ramapo (occasionally spelled Ramapough) is the name of several places and institutions in northern New Jersey and southeastern New York State. They were named after the Ramapough, a band of the Lenape Indians who migrated into the area from Connecti ...

for use as a

water supply Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Thes ...

resource However, that never happened. Instead, Coykendall used the northernmost section, from Rosendale to Rondout, to transport

Rosendale cement Rosendale cement is a natural hydraulic cement that was produced in and around Rosendale, New York, beginning in 1825. From 1818 to 1970 natural cements were produced in over 70 locations in the United States and Canada. More than half of the 35 mi ...

and other general merchandise to the river Hudson until abandoning that business in 1904. The canal was never used again. As the 20th century began, the company used some of the canal

right-of-way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

for its expanding railroad operations; some of the rest was sold to various private companies, mainly other, smaller railroads. Some communities along the route also filled it in to expand their own neighborhoods, or for safety reasons as when a

man supposedly drowned in it in 1900. During the early 21st century residents of the town of Deerpark, north of Port Jervis, complained that the canal had been leaking water and causing flooding in the neighborhoods near

Cuddebackville Cuddebackville is a hamlet in the town of Deerpark, located in Orange County, New York, United States. Taking US-209, Its location is about north of Port Jervis. Cuddebackville is home to Hamilton Bicentennial Elementary School which is run by ...

in recent years. Orange County, which maintains it in that area, met with town officials and local residents to discuss possible solutions.

Preservation as historic site

Some of the ruins of the canal and its associated structures remain. The Delaware & Hudson Canal Historical Society was formed in 1967;. The Society's D&H Canal Museum and Five Lock's Walk (a National Historic Landmark) operate from May through October. Visitors can view a working lock model and retrace the steps of the historic "canawlers" on the recently restored 1/2 mile towpath trail which features five stone locks and lock tender's cottages. } its museum has an extensive education program and hosts hundreds of area students each season. The Neversink Valley Area Museum was formed in Orange County New York in 1968 and the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

recognized the canal site in Orange County as a

. In 1969, New York's Sullivan County bought a portion to develop as a park. Many other buildings and sites associated with the canal have been added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

and state and local landmark lists.

Canal

The finished canal ran , from Honesdale to Kingston (counting the tidewater portions of the Rondout where the canal joined the creek at Eddyville). Its 108

locks Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

took it over elevation changes totaling , more than the Erie Canal's . The channel was deep (eventually increased to ) by wide. It was crossed by 137 bridges and had 26 dams, basins and

reservoirs A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including control ...

. Originally it crossed the four rivers along its course — the Lackawaxen, Delaware, Neversink and Rondout Creek — via slackwater dams. Aqueducts were built over the rivers to replace them by

John Roebling John Augustus Roebling (born Johann August Röbling; June 12, 1806 – July 22, 1869) was a German-born American civil engineer. He designed and built wire rope suspension bridges, in particular the Brooklyn Bridge, which has been designated ...

in the 1840s, eliminating a few days from canal travel time and reducing accidents that were occurring at the Delaware crossing with loggers rafting their harvest downstream. Barges were pulled by

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two pos ...

s along the adjacent

towpath A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge. This mode of transport ...

, a power source employed even after the development of

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...

s, since the bow wave from a faster steamboat would have damaged the channel. Children were often hired to lead the mules at first; in the canal's later years grown men were employed. They had to walk a day, pump out the barges and tend the animals. For this they were paid about $3 a month. The canal was divided into three sections for operational purposes: the Lackawaxen, from Honesdale to the river Delaware; the Delaware, along the river from there to Port Jervis; and the Neversink, from Port Jervis to Rondout (now part of the city of Kingston) near the junction of Rondout Creek with the Hudson River. A voyage along its length took, initially, a week. It was closed on Sundays, and would suspend operations each winter when the canal froze or was likely to do sp. Its primary business was the transport of coal and lumber from the interior to the river Hudson, where it could be floated downstream to New York by river. There was little traffic to Pennsylvania other than empty barges. The company tried offering passenger service for a while, and

Washington Irving Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for his short stories "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and " The Legen ...

, a friend of Hone's, made the trip during the 1840s, but it was ultimately ended as unprofitable.

Legacy

Besides its historical firsts, the canal's most significant effect was to help stimulate the growth of New York City along with the other anthracite canals. Fueled by the cheap and plentiful coal barged along the canal and the river Hudson, the city was able to develop and industrialize rapidly. The company's first president,

Philip Hone Philip Hone (October 25, 1780 – May 5, 1851) was Mayor of New York City from 1826 to 1827.Minutes of the Common Council of the City of New York, 1784-1831. Volume XV, November 10, 1825 to December 25, 1826'. New York: City of New York, 1917. p. ...

, served a term as the city's mayor during the canal's construction. Later, John Roebling's experience building the canal served him well in designing the

Brooklyn Bridge The Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid cable-stayed/ suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River ...

. On the Pennsylvania end, the interior anthracite regions were able to grow and develop from the rough

wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

they had been when William Wurts traveled them and mapped the coal deposits. The viability of its anthracite encouraged selling to other markets as well, sustaining the region economically well into the 20th century. Along its route, the canal created small communities at some of its stops. Some were named for canal executives. Honesdale was named for

, the company's first president. The village of Peenpack, New York, renamed itself Port Jervis after the engineer soon after incorporating in 1853. Further north, the Wurtses are remembered by

Wurtsboro, New York Wurtsboro is a village located on U.S. Route 209 in the town of Mamakating in Sullivan County, New York, United States, near its junction with New York State Route 17 (which is being upgraded to interstate standards and will be renumbered as i ...

. A number of other New York communities with "port" in their name, such as Phillipsport,

Port Orange Port Orange is a city in Volusia County, Florida. The city's population was estimated at 64,842 in 2019 by the U.S. Census Bureau. The city is part of the Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach metropolitan area; the metropolitan area's populati ...

, Port Benjamin and Port Jackson (now Accord) indicate their origins as canal towns. Summitville is named for its being the highest easterly point along the canal route. As automobiles began to replace the transportation function of the railroads, which had once done the same to the canal, the general route of the canal was used as a highway route. Routes

US 6 U.S. Route 6 (US 6), also called the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, honoring the American Civil War veterans association, is a main route of the U.S. Highway system. While it currently runs east-northeast from Bishop, California, to ...

and PA 590 follow part of the route between Honesdale and Hawley, with 590 running along the towpath and now-dry bed as it continues east along the Lackawaxen River. The New York section of

US 209 U.S. Route 209 (US 209) is a long U.S. Highway in the states of Pennsylvania and New York. Although the route is a spur of US 9, US 209 never intersects US 9, coming within five miles of the route and making the short ...

links the same communities in that state as the canal did, and intersects or is closely parallel to its remnants in several areas. Within towns, Canal Street follows the route in Port Jervis, as does Towpath Road in

and the Town of Wawarsing. The canal resulted in improvements in other technologies as well. The

discovered while excavating the canal bed near that town in 1825 would not only provide the canal itself with a cheap building material but created an industry that sustained the region for some time.

The canal now

After its designation as a National Historic Landmark, interest increased for preserving what remained of the canal during the late 1960s. The canal, its infrastructure and associated buildings survive in many areas along its length.

Pennsylvania

Roebling's Delaware Aqueduct Side View 3000px

*Honesdale: The terminal basin site has a state historical marker, and traces of the gravity railroad route can still be seen. Some stretches of the bed are visible along Routes 6 and 590 as they approach town from the south. *Lower Lackawaxen valley: Route 590 follows the bed and towpath in some areas, and Towpath Road follows the route in Pike County's Lackawaxen Township. * Lackawaxen and

Barryville, New York Barryville is a hamlet (and census-designated place) in Highland, Sullivan County, New York, United States. Previously known as "The River," the hamlet was renamed for William T. Barry, postmaster general under President Andrew Jackson. History ...

: Roebling's Delaware Aqueduct, the only one of the four on the canal still in use and a

National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark __NOTOC__ The following is a list of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks as designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers since it began the program in 1964. The designation is granted to projects, structures, and sites in the United State ...

as the oldest wire

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

in the United States, was restored by the

and still carries automobiles over the Delaware River between the two states. Just north of the bridge, a former company office has been converted into a

bed and breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...

New York

: A portion of the old towpath near Park Avenue ( NY 42/ 97) on the north end of the city has been paved and is used as a city park. Canal Street is the former bed, now filled.

Fort Decker "Fort Decker" is a stone house built in 1793 from the remains of the fort of that name. It is located on West Main Street in Port Jervis, New York, United States, the oldest building in that city, which it predates by several decades. The origin ...

, the oldest building in the city, was used to house canal workers during construction. *

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

has developed a county park along the river Neversink here, just south of

Hamilton Bicentennial Elementary School Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilton ...

off Route 209. The footings of Roebling's aqueduct still stand, and a portion of the bed and towpath persist in the adjacent woods. The Neversink Valley Museum, also located in the park, has some exhibits related to the canal. * Sullivan County: maintains the largest remaining fragment of the canal, some of which is still wet, as the Delaware and Hudson Canal

Linear Park A linear park is a type of park that is significantly longer than it is wide. These linear parks are strips of public land running along canals, rivers, streams, defensive walls, electrical lines, or highways and shorelines. Examples of linear p ...

. Hiking,

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

and jogging, bicycling and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

are permitted along the , section near Summitville, north of Wurtsboro in the Town of Mamakating. Much of the land is beginning to return to its natural state due to the long years since the canal was abandoned. Some locks and other structures can be found from three different access points along US Route 209. The county park provides a seasonal interpretive facility at the northerly Bova Road access. * Woodridge: Silver Lake Dam, some distance from the canal mainline, was built during the 1840s expansion to provide a reliable reservoir for the summit section of the canal. *Ellenville: Towpath Road follows the old route from Route 209 south of the village to Canal Street (

NY 52 New York State Route 52 (NY 52) is a state highway in the southeastern part of the state. It generally runs from west to east through five counties, beginning at the New York–Pennsylvania border, Pennsylvania state line in the Delawa ...

) within it, and a wet section of the bed remains just north of Canal Street in the woods adjacent to Berme Road just opposite the village's firehouse. * Napanoch: A dry section of bed is located between

Eastern Correctional Facility The Eastern Correctional Facility is a state prison for men in Napanoch, Ulster County, New York. Eastern is one of the oldest prison facilities in the state. It has been a maximum security prison for men since 1973. History The site ope ...

and the Rondout Creek, right next to the old Ontario and Western railroad station. * High Falls: Several old locks are located here, near the site of the last of Roebling's aqueducts, as well as the canal museum. The downtown area was largely developed as a result of the canal. * Rosendale The empty bed of the canal runs parallel to NY 213 between its crossing of the Rondout and

Rosendale Village Rosendale is a hamlet with a population of approximately 1,350 people located in the Town of Rosendale in Ulster County, New York, United States. It was also a census-designated place known as Rosendale Village until 2010, when the U.S. Census B ...

. *Creeklocks: The northernmost lock still exists, as does the final section before the canal flowed into the Rondout Creek. *Rondout: The former port of

, the north end of the barges' route, has been recognized as the Rondout-West Strand Historic District and revitalized, still in use as a waterfront and a draw for visitors to the city. The area is now part of the city of Kingston.

References

Hagley Museum and Library The Hagley Museum and Library is a nonprofit educational institution in unincorporated New Castle County, Delaware, near Wilmington. Covering more than along the banks of the Brandywine Creek, the museum and grounds include the first du Pont ...

offer an opportunity to examine in detail the early history of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company {{DEFAULTSORT:Delaware And Hudson Canal Canals in New York (state) Canals in Pennsylvania Canals on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Canals on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) National Historic Landmarks in New York (state) National Historic Landmarks in Pennsylvania History of Ulster County, New York Transportation buildings and structures in Sullivan County, New York Transportation buildings and structures in Pike County, Pennsylvania History of Orange County, New York Hudson River 1825 establishments in the United States 1899 disestablishments Historic American Engineering Record in New York (state) Historic American Engineering Record in Pennsylvania Transportation buildings and structures in Ulster County, New York Transportation buildings and structures in Wayne County, Pennsylvania Transportation buildings and structures in Orange County, New York Canals opened in 1828 National Register of Historic Places in Wayne County, Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Ulster County, New York National Register of Historic Places in Orange County, New York National Register of Historic Places in Pike County, Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Sullivan County, New York