Delaware Canal State Park

	Delaware Canal State Park
	View of the hiking trail on the canal
location	Bucks County in Pennsylvania (USA)
surface	336 ha
Geographical location	40 ° 33 ' N , 75 ° 5' W Coordinates: 40 ° 33 '1 " N , 75 ° 5' 8" W.
Setup date	1931
administration	Pennsylvania Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources

Delaware Canal State Park is a state park in Pennsylvania , in Bucks Counties, and Northampton Counties . It is approximately 336 hectares (97 km long) and runs along the Delaware River and extends from Bristol to Easton in Pennsylvania. In the early 18th century canals were built on both sides of the Delaware to transport coal from northern Pennsylvania to major cities.

history

In the 18th century, the population in what is now the east of the United States grew rapidly. Bad roads and poor infrastructure prompted investment in canals to move goods from the hinterland to growing cities like Philadelphia and New York City . Enthusiastic about the implementation of the New York-State-Erie Canal, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania commissioned the construction of the canal. It was mainly Irish immigrants who were recruited to promote it. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in Bristol on October 27, 1827. On July 23, 1832, the canal from Bristol to Easton was completed. Until the outbreak of civil war, up to 3,000 mule- pulled boats were counted a day. They mainly transported coal, fruit, wood, building materials and fertilizer. As the railways became more efficient, traffic on the canal fell sharply. The last boat that drove through the entire route stopped its traffic on October 17, 1931. There were no more goods on board. In August 1955, Hurricane Connie and Diane caused major floods in what is now the state park. From 1989 the importance of the canal for the economic development of America was recognized and one began to take care of the conservation.