ALL-DAY HISTORY & ENVIRONMENTAL SYMPOSIUM
Sunday, May 18, 2025
C. Howard Hiester Canal Center
at the Berks County Heritage Center
1102 Red Bridge Road, Reading PA 19605
DOWNLOAD A REGISTRATION FORM HERE
To commemorate and dive deeper into the 200th anniversary of the May 1825 completion of the Schuylkill Navigation slackwater-canal system, please join us for a packed day of content surrounding the history, both good and bad, of this Industrial Revolution feat.
You’ll hear success stories of preservation and restoration of Navigation infrastructure, towpath trails, and Schuylkill River water quality. The day also includes Schuylkill Valley Transportation History, Archive Sharing, “Lock Reveal” reports, and images of current conditions along the 108-mile route.
Among the invited speakers are author-researchers Larry Whyte (Stream of Providence), Chari Towne (A River Again), Sandy Sorlien (Inland), Stuart Wells (Girard Canal survey); Pennsylvania Canal Society President Doug Logan, Philadelphia Water Department historian Adam Levine, and activists Kay Sykora from the Roxborough-Manayunk Conservancy and Mitch Martin of the future Friends of the Schuylkill Navigation.
The beautiful Berks County Heritage Center will be open for self-guided tours of the Hiester Canal Center exhibits, Union Canal Towpath, Wertz’s Covered Bridge, and the houseboat Mildred. Two films on the Navigation will loop in the Center.
Enjoy special extended hours at the park starting 8:30 before our Confluence begins at 9:00, and during the lunch break.
SEE THE FULL SCHEDULE HERE
SEE SPEAKER’S BIOS HERE
For more information about other Schuylkill Navigation Bicentennial events, visit this link.
The hint of a canal boat in the banner at the top of the page comes from the engraving of Reading below, part of an 1862 atlas titled The Township Map[s] of Berks County, Pennsylvania (SOURCE: Library of Congress)
