|
An example of the scenic,
historic landscape of the Heritage Corridor - a
portion of the Delaware Canal in Bucks County
Photograph by Ronald Gombach, courtesy of Living
Places |
The Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor
was established by the United States Congress in 1988
for its important history and rich and distinctive historic
and natural resources. The Corridor showcases the Delaware,
Lehigh and Wyoming Valleys where anthracite coal was
discovered, canals were built and iron was first poured.
The Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor,
which is also a State Heritage Park, is a joint effort
of private groups and interested citizens, county and
municipal governments, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
and the Federal government to conserve its historic
and natural resources, and provide appropriate development
opportunities for a sustainable future.
The National Heritage Corridor is recognized as an
innovative and effective way to conserve our nation's
heritage and fulfill the mission of bringing the benefits
of national parks close to the largest population concentration
in America. Many benefit from this effort, including
nearly half a million students in schools and colleges
who learn in the living museum surrounding them, a museum
of history, sociology, geography, economy, geology,
wildlife and botany. Local businesses benefit from the
renewal of downtowns, and the restoration and adaptive
use of the region's historic buildings. Residents are
able to see their way of life protected and take renewed
pride in their unique heritage as individuals and as
communities.
This locktender's house
is an example of the many historic buildings encompassed
by the Corridor
Photograph by Sue Pridemore |
|
To this end, Pennsylvania Heritage Park funding was
recently awarded to projects within the Corridor that
will stimulate regional economic development, preservation
and heritage tourism. In historic downtown Bristol
projects include the construction of a visitor's gateway
entrance and courtyard at the Canal's End Reach and
construction and improvements to the Delaware Canal
area near Lock #4. Portions of the Lehigh
Canal in Carbon County are slated for preservation,
stabilization and new signs to identify historic structures.
Various towns and cities will receive technical assistance
to help conserve environmental, scenic, cultural, historic
and recreational resources in the Corridor.
Today the Corridor's extraordinary natural, cultural
and recreational resources give us a living "national
park" where people reside, work and share the responsibility
of its preservation. Multitudes of visitors, drawn by
the "real places" and the amazing evolution
of landscapes, may discover rivers, mines and company
mining towns, canals and canal towns, railroads and
other related resources encompassed by the Corridor.
The region is a veritable microcosm of the nation's
historical development. Excerpted from "Along the Corridor," newsletter
of the The Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor,
the Management Action Plan of the Delaware &
Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, and information
provided by Sue Pridemore, Chief of Visitor Services
for the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor
Commission. |