Schuylkill Canal

Canals, Locks and Navigations
The actual name for what is commonly called the Schuylkill Canal is "Schuylkill Navigation". It is located in the state of Pennsylvania in the United States and is an old commercial waterway that provided water power and transportation to the area in the early 1800s. Found in and alongside the Schuylkill River it fostered commercial development of the natural resources in Pennsylvania by offering a reliable form of transport of bulk materials to markets. Rather than being one canal, it was a system of interconnected slack water pools and canals that used "Locks" to allow movement of large boats moving from the elevation of one water body to the elevation of another by adjusting the water volume of the locks. Large boats would enter the Locks (monitored by a Locks Tender), gates would close and water volume would be adjusted downward or upward to accommodate the water level needed to continue the trip through the canal.

Early History
Chartered in 1815, the Schuylkill Navigation Company was designed to construct navigational improvements on the Schuylkill River. By 1827, 108 miles (174 km) of the waterway was completed. It connected Port Carbon and the Coal Region of Pottsville to Philadelphia. Over the course of 46 miles of slack water pools and 62 miles of canals 92 lift locks were installed. These 92 locks made it possible to lift the water level a total of 588 feet over the 108 miles. By providing a means of transportation of large cargoes the Schuylkill Navigation transformed the small cities of Pottsville, Reading, and Norristown into manufacturing centers.