Pennsylvania Canal (North Branch Division)
The North Branch Division of the Pennsylvania Canal ran 169 miles (272 km) from the canal basin at Northumberland, Pennsylvania, at the confluence of the North Branch Susquehanna River and the West Branch Susquehanna River, north to the border with New York state near Athens. The canal had a total of 43 locks that overcame 334 feet (102 m) of elevation between its end points.[1]
The first segment of 55 miles (89 km) was begun in 1828 and completed in 1831 to Nanticoke Falls. In 1834, a project called the Wyoming Extension increased the canal's length by 17 miles (27 km) past Wilkes-Barre to Pittston. A final extension of 97 miles (156 km) from Pittston to the New York state line was started in 1836 and finished in 1856.[1]
On the New York side of the border, the privately-built Junction Canal of 18 miles (29 km) linked the North Branch Canal to Elmira, New York. About 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Athens, the Junction Canal connected with the Chemung Canal, which led north to Seneca Lake and the Erie Canal. Through these connections, boats using the Pennsylvania Canal system were able to travel as far as Buffalo and Lake Champlain.[1]
At its southern terminus in the Northumberland basin, the North Branch Canal met the West Branch Canal and the Susquehanna Division Canal. Through these connections it formed part of a multi-state water transportation system including Pennsylvania's Main Line of Public Works.
Remnants
Susquehanna Riverlands in Salem Township, 8 miles (13 km) south of Wilkes-Barre, has 0.5 miles (0.8 km) of river walking path and filled canal owned and managed by Pennsylvania Power and Light Company.[2]
Lock No. 1 and a section of the original North Branch Canal in Northumberland were intact in 1986 as was Lock No. 2 below Bloomsburg. Occasional sections of canal bed remained between Shickshinny and West Nanticoke, and the West Nanticoke guard lock was intact. Canal bed was visible from the Lackawanna River toward Ransom and largely intact above Vosburg between Lackawanna Campground and Horse Race Falls. At Laceyville a museum known as the Oldest House was once a lockkeeper's house. Other remnants such as crib work, canal embankments, iron spikes, and timbers could be found here and there along the full length of the canal.[3]
Notes
Bibliography
- Petrillo, F. Charles (1986). Anthracite and Slackwater: The North Branch Canal 1828–1901. Easton, Pennsylvania: Center for Canal History and Technology. ISBN 0-930973-04-6.
- Shank, William H. (1981). The Amazing Pennsylvania Canals, 150th Anniversary Edition. York, Pennsylvania: American Canal and Transportation Center. ISBN 0-933788-37-1.