Schuylkill Navigation: Celebrating 200 years
September 29, 2024
Learn more about the upcoming 200th birthday of Pennsylvania’s pioneering slackwater-canal system, with events all along the river in Spring 2025.
Annual reports and other documents relating to Philadelphia’s water supply system, 1796-1992
February 21, 2024
My ultimate goal is to eventually post a comprehensive list of all reports relating to Philadelphia’s water supply, from the late 18th century to the present, with links to PDFs of each. It may be a while before I complete that task, but in the meantime I want to share what I have either found […]
From Creek To Sewer
November 30, 2023
This post is where this website (under a couple of different names) began more than 20 years ago. The text is still the same, but I have added new maps and new high-resolution images that are worth checking out.
A new book, more than 40 years in the making, about an iconic Philadelphia building
February 17, 2025
Everything you’ve always wanted to know about the Fairmount Water Works, from Jane Mork Gibson and A. Leonard Pundt III
Philadelphia drinking water 90+ years ago
February 10, 2025
This old story taught even a grizzled water rat like me something new.
Farewell to the SS United States
February 8, 2025
The iconic steamship, a hulking fixture in the South Philadelphia riverfront for decades, will soon begin the next phase of its life–this time under instead of on top of the water
The pipe beneath the rocky path
February 5, 2025
One of the city’s most beautiful places has a secret that few people know about.
Map Lovers’ Monday: Los Angeles, 100 years ago
February 3, 2025
These maps of Los Angeles paint a poignant picture of the city, pre-wildfire.
Map Lovers’ Monday: The Reading Railroad, 1958
February 3, 2025
The Reading Railroad in its heyday, in 1958, the 125th anniversary of the road.
Map Lovers’ Monday: Philadelphia in 1897, with color added
January 27, 2025
What are all those colors brightening up this otherwise mundane, monochrome map?
Fairmount Water Works in High Resolution
January 22, 2025
After zooming in on these photographs, you may want to slow down and linger in them for awhile.
Roxborough Water Works – A Brief History
January 22, 2025
While the pumping station is gone, other pieces of this important part of the city’s water system have been dedicated to other uses.
Water Department Newsletters, 1959-1997
January 20, 2025
These employee newsletters offer a more intimate view of the Philadelphia Water Department than the more formal, public-facing annual reports.
Water Bureau Newspaper Scrapbook, 1942-1952
December 27, 2024
Extra! Extra! Read all about the city’s water and sewer infrastructure 80-some years ago. One warning: it wasn’t a pretty picture.
Map Lovers’ Monday: Circles of Destruction
November 4, 2024
How the government used circles on maps during the Cold War.