History & Culture

The Charles F. Mercer boat sitting in Lock 19 at the C&O Canal, the 184.5-mile backbone of the Potomac Heritage Trail. This Mercer boat and the canal symbolize the history of transportation along the trail corridor.

NPS | Steve Dean

The Potomac Heritage Trail and the Evolution of the Nation

An anchor in the ever-changing context of the Potomac is George Washington's vision of the river as "the great avenue into the Western Country." The Potomac provided the central hub in the life of our Nation's first president. He was born and died on its banks, he surveyed much land within the basin, and his calling as a military leader came on the river and in defense of the Potomac Country for the British Crown. Washington used the river as a highway from the eastern settlements to the wilder west, and it provided food, income, and power for many. Washington himself owned about 12,000 acres of land in scattered locations.

The theme of an east-west corridor links the history, transportation and technology of the Potomac River corridor. Prior to the European invasion, land transportation in the Potomac region was largely by trail, usually the improved trace of a game trail. Large mammals, especially bison and elk during historic times, picked routes that used the least energy, and, over the years, the passage of animals engraved trails in the landscape. People followed these trails, and the resulting paths became the established routes of travel.

The Potomac represented more than an avenue west--it also represented resources and waterpower. The river provided a rich fisheries resource, remarked upon by Captain Henry Fleet in 1631. Washington himself harvested the river to feed his establishment fish, both fresh and salt, to sell and to fertilize his fields. European colonists recognized the vast potential of waterpower by adopting water laws, including mill seat rights, as some of their first legislation. Wind and tidal mills predominated during this period, but as settlement expanded into the Piedmont mill-seats became an important aspect of land grants.

Today, the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail follows the route of the Potomac River, connecting visitors to historic sites and offering opportunities to connect to the history, culture, and recreational opportunities along its corridor.

 

Studying History and Culture along the Potomac Heritage Trail

The Potomac Heritage Trail is an oasis for visitors and for historians and researchers because of its well protected cultural heritage and history. With an archeological record going back millennia and hundreds of years of written history, the story of the Potomac Heritage Trail is diverse, complex, and continually being reframed. Research in archives, on the landscape, through oral histories, and through archeology provides information about how to best care for the park and informs how we tell the stories of our park.
Read more in the articles below by and about researchers studying history and culture along the Potomac Heritage Trail.