A Story to Tell

If you were asked what excites you about the Schuylkill Canal, would your answer be its industrial history or its use as a recreational resource? Do you enjoy the educational programs SCA offers or do you come to our family fun events such as Schuylkill Canal Day and the Holiday Luminaria?

Inside, on the following pages, Tony Geyelin asks a similar question and challenges you to think about the questions posed to you. These questions are being asked for a variety of reasons. From a marketing point of view SCA needs to understand who our members are - why you have joined and what your interests are. As Tony mentions, we need this information to improve on what we offer to better serve your interests. And, just as important, we need to market to a bigger audience to achieve goals set forth for funding purposes. Your response to his query will help us to do just that.

Another reason is to develop and expand on the story of the Schuylkill Canal, its past, its present day use and the future still to come. Over the course of the next few months the SCA will be working on the Oakes Reach Interpretive Plan. This plan will help SCA develop the “story line” on how we should present the site to enhance the visitor’s experience. Do we tell the story of the navigation’s industrial history - what’s the difference between a navigation system and a canal, how and why was it built, what was the main cargo transported, how does a lock work, what did the lock tender do? Other questions come to mind – was the canal always here, what affect did the navigation system have on the towns and villages that bordered the Schuylkill River, did it create jobs and economic growth, did the towns people use the canal for recreation in the ways it is currently used? SCA already offers answers to these questions when asked by visitors today.

What SCA envisions is an interpretive plan that will provide the framework on HOW to bring the “story” alive and, at the same time, continue to promote the recreational activities that will encourage diverse visitor groups. It will also provide a general overview of the site from the visitor’s perspective. It will look at basic access issues, how to adaptively re-use existing buildings on the site, and the enhancement of the recreational facilities within the 2 mile linear park.

SCA does not plan to create a museum but a destination. Oakes Reach will be a destination that will provoke and stimulate you with its history but also bring you here for the fun and recreation. You will come to enjoy a day outdoors and take a boat ride, eat a picnic lunch and take a walk through the grounds at the Locktender’s House. Stop in and take a look around, meet the staff and listen to the story of the Schuylkill Canal. Sit and have some refreshments and gather information on other places to go to and things to do in the region for later that day or the next trip back. For example, a great place to go to right here in the immediate community is the Phoenixville Historical Society at Church and Main Sts. There you will find an extensive collection of canal memorabilia and its history relating to the Phoenixville area. The society’s website is http://phoenixvillehistoricalsociety.org.

A big part of telling the story of Oakes Reach is the community and the people who lived, worked and played along the Schuylkill Canal. The villages of Mont Clare, Port Providence and Oaks grew from small settlements along the River’s edge to villages that served the needs of the Navigation Company and the canallers who worked on the boats. Another important part of the story is how the Schuylkill Navigation evolved from a commerce-driven enterprise to its eventual demise due to the railroads and Mother Nature. And how, today, the canal area is being restored and reused as a well-appreciated historic and recreational community resource.

And you can have a part in telling the story as well. Over the next few months, as the plan develops, SCA will be scheduling public meetings to present the plan to our members and the community. The dates, times and locations of these meetings will be advertised in the local papers and on our website. SCA is also asking members of the community to share their family’s histories relating to the Schuylkill Canal. If you have canal memorabilia and/or recollections of yourself or family members who lived, worked or played along the canal and you would like to share that with the Association, we would love to hear about it. Get in touch with Betsy Daley at 610-917-0021 if you have something of interest to offer. If there is enough interest, SCA will coordinate a summer program specifically on this subject for the entire community to enjoy.

The interpretive plan, which began in February, is being coordinated by Ueland Junker McCauley Nicholson from Philadelphia together with McKelvey Museum Services from Wilmington. The historic research that will be included in the final plan is being gathered by Tri-County Heritage Society from Elverson. Funding for this plan has been provided by the Pennsylvania Heritage Park Program administered by the Schuylkill River Greenway Association and the Bard Foundation from Royersford. SCA is grateful to both agencies for providing the funds to begin this very important and interesting project of telling the story of the Oakes Reach of the historic Schuylkill Navigation.