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Reviews
| Gateway to the Coalfields, The Upper Grand Section of the Lehigh Canal. By Joan Gilbert. Canal History and Technology Press, Easton, Penn., 2005. x+212 pp. diags., illus., photos, tables, bibl., index. $23.50 pb (ISBN 978-0-930973-37-7).
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Although the book's title refers to the Upper Grand Section of the Lehigh Canal, the text is really an examination of the entire Lehigh River. In researching the technological development of the Lehigh River Navigation system, as well as the broad economic and social aspects associated with it, the author places the system within the context of transportation and industrial development in the eastern Pennsylvania region. Joan Gilbert began researching and writing on history and industry quite recently. Coming from England as a business and journalism graduate, Gilbert worked as a literary agent and editor in New York. In her retirement, she moved to Pennsylvania and has been closely involved in the activities of the National Canal Museum in Easton. This book forms part of an extensive line of publications from that museum on all aspects of canal history, including books on many U.S. canals, canal communities, and canal boats as well as regular publication of Canal History and Technology Proceedings. While Gilbert's work is not high academia, she never claims it to be and provides readers with an easy and interesting access to the subject.
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In the 1820s Josiah White and Erskine Hazard succeeded in constructing what the legislature of Pennsylvania had attempted to do for the previous 50 years—build a canal down the rugged Lehigh Valley to exploit the once-inaccessible resources held there. After discovering a method of effectively using anthracite coal in his wire mill, White set his sights on the coalfields adjacent the Lehigh Valley and was granted, with his partners, the rights to develop canal works there.
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Determination, invention, and risking a wire mill business are what it took company founders to see the project through to completion. The group started small. White's invention of a hydrostatic sluice, which created an artificial flood upon which arcs (small square boats) could be floated downstream, was used to create a one-way canal. Beginning with the completion of this simple system in 1822, the transport route saw continual upgrades, adaptations, and connections with the ever-growing system of transport routes in the northeast United States. The canal became two-way, was connected to and augmented by railway lines and inclined planes, and became home to numerous industrial plants. In time, the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company expanded its market, seeking efficient ways to transport coal to New York City. In 1862, three days of rain flooded the river, and lumber-filled floodwaters battered and destroyed the canal infrastructure. While not stopping transport for long, the event provided a challenge for the company and, with the ever-growing rail network, a new age of transport to work within.
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The author provides two useful maps of the canal. One is a detailed hand-drawn map of the upper and lower sections of the canal, including the positions of locks, towns, and features. The second is a regional diagram of the system of canals surrounding the Lehigh. Unfortunately, many towns cited in the text are not referenced on the maps. Readers may be frustrated by the need to frequently check the maps to understand precisely where Gilbert is focusing her discussion.
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Readers will find numerous tables giving clear, precise details on the position of structures, commercial activities, and the like. A table comparing coal transportation loads taken on the canal with those on the competing Lehigh Valley Railroad is a particularly interesting and useful way of seeing how the competition among these modes of transportation played out. The table also demonstrates the fluctuating nature of the coal market with which the merchants had to contend.
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Transportation corridors, like that developed in the Lehigh Valley, are never simple systems. They are associated with many institutions: government, local communities, and associated businesses. They exist in a world of constantly evolving technologies and competition, of varying markets with changing demands for various goods. The Lehigh exemplifies a corridor operating under these conditions. Gilbert looks at all these issues and describes the changing character of this canal. Over time, the transportation and commercial systems associated with the Lehigh Valley become highly complex and interrelated. The extensive railroad network that developed across America in the late-19th century is a good example of how convoluted transportation systems became over time. Gilbert reviews these complications without attempting to unravel their endless complexity. In this way, she continues telling the core story without losing direction.
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The final chapter is the transcript of an interview with former Lehigh Canal employee Richard Arner, who worked on the canal from 1926 to 1936. This interview provides an excellent backdrop to the history of the canal by humanizing understanding of the canal and its workings.
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In places, a heavier editorial hand would have been useful. Important ideas are buried in chapters, and the reader can feel a little lost at times. For instance, the location of specific coalfields is confusing until one finds a map using the author's nomenclature. One is also surprised to discover a major and highly destructive flood event hidden in the middle of a chapter labeled "The Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad."
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Chapter 14, "Resurrection," provides details for tourists visiting the area. Gilbert describes remaining structures accessible for viewing and other sites available to visitors. The scant remains of canal infrastructure on the Upper Grand Section illustrate the destructive nature of the 1862 flood. Gilbert places her descriptions in the context of the greater Delaware and Lehigh Canal National Historic Heritage Corridor, adding useful descriptions of paths and museums and extending the book's appeal beyond a historic account.
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This book provides an interesting overview of the development of this historic canal corridor. It would prove a useful addition to those visiting this part of Pennsylvania, to anyone interested in canal or transport history, and to people living in the area who are interested in the origins of their town and the development of the area.
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