Canal lock with people and boats under a cloudy sky - historic dams and canals

Self-guided · metro area, Pennsylvania

Historic Dams and Canals in Scranton, PA

Canals, locks, dams and waterworks near you, the engineering that moved goods and water before the highways.

The Scranton–Wilkes-Barre, PA metro area has about 574,418 residents, ranking 103rd in the country. Some of these sites are open to visitors, some are private, and some are ruins. All of them are on the record, and all of them can be seen from the public way.

Hoover dam building entrance with visitors - historic dams and canals — Photo: Varun Venugopal on Unsplash

A person walks beside a canal with boats and houses - historic dams and canals — Photo: Kevin Musumbu on Unsplash

Horse pulling a boat along a canal - historic dams and canals — Photo: Tony Williams on Unsplash

On the record near Scranton, PA

The 12 nearest

25 listed sites on the record match historic dams and canals within 120 miles of Scranton, PA, out of 65 listed sites of every kind within 25 miles.

D & H Canal Co. Office35 miles from the center of Scranton · Building · Lackawaxen · listed 1993National Register of Historic Places
Delaware Aqueduct35 miles from the center of Scranton · Structure · Lackawaxen · listed 1968National Register of Historic Places
Delaware and Hudson Canal55 miles from the center of Scranton · Structure · Cuddebackville · listed 1968National Register of Historic Places
Chenango Canal Prism and Lock 10758 miles from the center of Scranton · Structure · Chenango Forks · listed 2010National Register of Historic Places
Silver Lake Dam61 miles from the center of Scranton · Structure · Woodridge · listed 2000National Register of Historic Places
Morris Canal Historic District (Boundary Increase)62 miles from the center of Scranton · Building · Roxbury Township · listed 2016National Register of Historic Places
Delaware and Raritan Canal68 miles from the center of Scranton · District · Lambertville · listed 1973National Register of Historic Places
Leesport Lock House68 miles from the center of Scranton · Building · Leesport · listed 1977National Register of Historic Places
Montgomery Water Works Building75 miles from the center of Scranton · Building · Montgomery · listed 2005National Register of Historic Places
Chemung Canal Bank Building75 miles from the center of Scranton · Building · Elmira · listed 1978National Register of Historic Places
Allegheny Aqueduct78 miles from the center of Scranton · Structure · Gibraltar · listed 1984National Register of Historic Places
Lock Tender's House and Canal Store Ruin84 miles from the center of Scranton · Building · High Falls · listed 1998National Register of Historic Places

Distances are straight-line from the center of Scranton, PA. Many sites are private property or working buildings - view them from the public way. See them on the map.

Dams and Canals in Scranton, step by step

1
See every listed site of this kind in the area
2
Sort by distance and pick the closest few
3
Read the record for the year, the builder and the use
4
View from the public way and note what has changed
5
Collect the set and move on to the next county

What people in Scranton, PA ask first

How much does it cost to visit these sites in Scranton, PA?

Most listed sites can be seen from a public road or sidewalk at no cost, and the app is free to use. Some sites are private homes, working churches or museums with their own hours and fees. The record for each one says what it is, so you know before you go.

Where does the information on these sites come from?

From published records: the National Register of Historic Places, the Recorded Texas Historic Landmark program, and the Georgia Historical Society and Georgia Department of Natural Resources marker program. Every site on the page names its source.

Are these buildings open to the public?

Some are, many are not. Churches, courthouses and libraries usually keep regular hours. Houses, barns and mills are often private and best seen from the road. The record for each site tells you which kind it is.

What does it mean when a site is on the National Register?

It means the property was documented and accepted as historically significant. Listing honors the site, it does not open it to visitors or stop an owner from using it.

How a visit works in Scranton

Step 1
Find the place
Every stop starts as a pin with real coordinates. In Scranton, PA the map shows what is listed around you and how far each one is, so the first decision is where to go, and it takes a few seconds.
Step 2
Read the story
The record behind each marker is kept whole: what happened there, when, who was involved, and why it was worth a sign. You read it standing where it happened, which is the part a textbook cannot give you.
Step 3
Get there under your own power
Walk it, run it, hike it, ride it or drive it. Stops in Scranton, PA are chained into routes that fit the way you move, so a lunch break, a long run or a Saturday drive can all pass through history.
Step 4
Collect it and come back
Each stop you reach counts toward a badge, and a photo or a correction you send makes the record better for the next person. The map remembers where you have been, so the next trip starts where the last one ended.