Book Review – Inland. The Abandoned Canals of the Schuylkill Navigation, by Sandy Sorlien.

Inland. The Abandoned Canals of the Schuylkill Navigation, Sandy Sorlien, with a foreward by John R. Stilgoe and essays by Mike Szilagyl and Karen Young. 2022. Hardcover, 192 pages.

The late Tom Grasso liked to call the ruins of the towpath canals our version of the Mayan ruins. You can find the remains of towpath canals throughout the landscape of the northeast and midwest in various conditions, from the lock that looks like it could be put to use today (with a bit of work), to piles of stones that where, maybe, an old lock that might have been. However, unlike the Mayan ruins, we have records, reports, maps, drawings, and even photographs of the canals in use. In many cases we can say how much stone and lumber went into a structure and what it cost. If we feel we need it, we can find out a lot about the old canals.

And yet, there is always a sense of mystery in those canal ruins. Most of the people who looks upon an old lock or aqueduct will not be a canal historian, and yet they will be fascinated by the stonework. Some will see art and beauty in the stones. It doesn’t matter what it was, the fact that it is here is enough. Some will see how nature is reclaiming the stones, with plants growing out from between the stonework and animals using it as their home. Others will see the ruins and wonder how our forefathers cut, shaped, moved and stacked the heavy stones. No matter how you look at them, the ruins of the past will always cause a sense of wonder.

The Schuylkill Navigation was one of many canals built in the 1800s, and it became one of the more successful canals that you have never heard about. Built along the Schuylkill River between Philadelphia and Port Carbon, the 108-mile-long system was a mix of river pools and 27 man-made canals. Construction began in the early 1800s and the canal remained in use through the early 1900s. Like many of the Pennsylvanian canals, it was built to haul coal and lumber to the cities along the Atlantic coast. However, unless you are from the Schuylkill area, or a canal historian, it is unlikely that you have learned about this navigation.

In Inland, Sandy Sorlien presents a history and photographic journey along of the Schuylkill Navigation in a grand style. Unlike the majority of history books that are presented in the typical smaller formats designed to fit on the book shelf, Sandy seemingly throws caution to the wind, using a large format that allows the photos and prints to be viewed with vibrancy, color and clarity. Sure, it costs more, but the book itself becomes a piece of art, as Sandy is a professional photographer and it shows in her images. The larger format encourages you to linger on the photos and prints to take them all in, and it is so nice that you can read the maps without the need to pull out the magnifying glass. The large format allows a map of the 108-mile-long navigation to flow, in color, across the inside front covers to the inside back covers. It might be the best map of the system I have seen.

The journey begins at the northern end in Schuylkill County and runs south to Philadelphia County. Sandy visited every lock and aqueduct site, and hiked all the 27 canals where they exist. Each photograph is presented with a brief caption. If you wish to know more, a separate chapter offers more detail on each photograph, such as notes about the structures and personal observations from her explorations. I especially enjoyed the drawings and maps in color. The people who drew these were often artists in their own right and presenting these in color is a nod to their talents.

Tom Grasso was fond of saying that the canal was the one creation of man most in harmony with nature. While the active canal offers an environment where animals and plants can live and thrive, the abandoned canal is gradually reclaimed to a point where it is difficult to distinguish between the man-made and the natural. The freeze-thaw cycle causes stones to shift and crack. Plants grow in the these cracks further hastening their decay. Trees grow and die. Seasonal floods wash away walls and berms leveling the landscape. The modern day canal historian realizes the need to capture this moment in time, as it, in itself becomes part of their history. Even though the canal is not in use, it is still there, and at some point, photographs taken today will become just as important as those taken 100 years ago.

As a plus, Inland also serves as a guide to the Schuylkill River Trail, the 120-mile-long greenway that follows the route of the old navigation and the railroads that replaced the canal boats. By using this book, you should be able to locate and understand the how and why of the system. It is a wonderful book.

(This was not a sponsored review. I purchased the book.)