Biking from Franklin on the Allegheny Valley Trail, average travelers would assume that the path on which they were riding was nothing more than an ordinary trail in an ordinary town. Then around the five mile marker they would see the massive Belmar Bridge rising in the distance. Today the bridge serves as a reminder of our region’s rich history, harkening back to the days when oil wells dotted the landscape and railroads crisscrossed the countryside. At about the eight mile marker, a large rock covered in intricate symbols and markings juts out of the river. Centuries ago, Indian God Rock served as a waypoint for the Native Americans who created the paths on which the railroads were built. The Allegheny Valley, Samuel Justus, and Sandycreek Trails built by the Allegheny Valley Trails connect all eras of our region’s history, from the Native American period to the glory days of the oil industry, the years of economic decline, and the our recent resurgence as a center of tourism and recreation.
The long history of the land that became the local bike trails begins with the arrival of the first Native Americans in the region between 12,000 and 18,000 years ago. These first nomadic tribes came from the plains to the west and created hunting trails through the wilderness over the centuries (Shank 3). The presence of three important river fords around the confluence of French Creek and the Allegheny River led to a higher concentration of trails around modern day Franklin. One of the crossings was near present day Sixth Street on the Allegheny River while the other two were around Tenth Street and Thirteenth Street on French Creek (Brady 132-39) George Washington used the Tenth Street crossing while passing through the area on a specia...
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...trails form part of the passage. Today the Rails-to-Trails Movement is shifting its focus westward while continuing to improve and build new trails in the Mid-Atlantic (Sanders).
A lot of young people today see Franklin as a small town without any special value, but the bike trail shows otherwise. Although our region’s glory days are in the past, the community today is strong. A hundred years ago, the people of Franklin built the Belmar Bridge, the three tunnels, and all of the railroads. Today the people of Franklin built the 28 miles of paved bike trails that compose the Allegheny Valley Trail and the Sandy Creek Trail. The fact that we have these wonderful bike trails and many historical landmarks to enjoy on a bike ride any time we want is a testament to the continued strength of our community and the hard work of the Allegheny Valley Trails Association.
I am from a small town called Bristol Borough, Pennsylvania. It is along the Delaware River, about 25 miles northeast of Philadelphia. Bristol Borough was founded in 1681. This is the states third oldest borough, that was once a busy river port with important shipbuilding activities (Cohen 438). It is predominately residential, with the exception of Mill Street, the community's traditional commercial street. It includes fine examples of many major styles and idioms, reflecting the community's long history and its importance as a transportation and commercial center (Owen 133). The 28-acre Bristol Industrial Historic District includes the original town of Bristol and the residential area that extends northeast along the bank of the Delaware River (Owen 132). The Bristol Industrial Historic District is a significant collection of the factory and mill complexes containing elements dating from 1875-1937 (Owen 133). Among the mills is the Grundy Mill Complex. It is a visual representation of industrial growth of Bristol Borough. This mill was run by Joseph R. Grundy. The dramatic scale of later buildings stand as the source and monument to the wealth and power of Joseph Grundy (Owen 145). Joseph Grundy was the proprietor of the Bristol Worsted Mills, and one of the most prominent manufacturers and businessmen of Bucks County (Green 252). The Bristol Worsted Mills no longer run but the building is still standing. Bristol owes a lot to Joseph R. Grundy for his contributions to the people and the town itself.
Farmers began to cultivate vast areas of needed crops such as wheat, cotton, and even corn. Document D shows a picture of The Wheat Harvest in 1880, with men on earlier tractors and over 20-30 horses pulling the tractor along the long and wide fields of wheat. As farmers started to accumilate their goods, they needed to be able to transfer the goods across states, maybe from Illinios to Kansas, or Cheyenne to Ohmaha. Some farmers chose to use cattle trails to transport their goods. Document B demonstrates a good mapping of the major railroads in 1870 and 1890. Although cattle trails weren't used in 1890, this document shows the existent of several cattle trails leading into Chyenne, San Antonio, Kansas City and other towns nearby the named ones in 1870. So, farmers began to transport their goods by railroads, which were publically used in Germany by 1550 and migrated to the United States with the help of Colonel John Stevens in 1826. In 1890, railroads expanded not only from California, Nebraska, Utah, Wyoming and Nevada, but up along to Washington, Montana, Michigan, down to New Mexico and Arizona as well. Eastern States such as New Jersey, Tennesse, Virginia and many others were filled with existing railroads prior to 1870, as Colonel John Stevens started out his railroad revolutionzing movement in New Jersey in 1815.
The transcontinental railroad was a 1,800 mile railroad linking Omaha, Missouri with Sacramento, California. This railroad was built through varying environmental conditions including grassy plains, desserts, and mountains such as the Sierra. The railroad revolutionized transportation in the nineteenth century (Galloway 4). The First Transcontinental Railroad was built in the 1860s in order to connect the Eastern and Western coasts of the United States. In the book The Railroads, statistical data describes that “In 1830, 23 miles of railroad track were being operated in the United States; by 1890 that figure had grown to 166,703 miles, as cities and villages were linked across the lan...
Sloan, Kitty. "Trail of Tears." The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture . N.p., 11 Aug. 2011. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. .
Transportation improved from the market revolution through many new inventions, railroads, steamboats, and canals. Pressure for improvements in transportation came at least as much from cities eager to buy as from farmers seeking to sell. The first railroad built was in 1792, it started a spread throughout the states. Cumberland which began to be built in 1811 and finished in 1852, known to be called the national road stretched over five hundred miles from Cumberland to Illinois. By 1821, there were four thousand miles of turnpike in the United States. Turnpikes were not economical to ship bulky goods by land across long distance across America, so another invention came about. Robert Fulton created steam boats in 1807; he named his first one ‘Clermont.’ These steam boats allowed quick travel upriver against the currents, they were also faster and cheaper. The steamboats became a huge innovation with the time travel of five miles per hour. It also stimulated agricultural economy of west by providing better access to markets at lower cost. While steamboats were conquering the western rivers, canals were being constructed in the northeastern states. The firs...
In 1775 Boone and 30 other woodsmen were hired to improve the trails between the Carolinas and the west. The resulting route reached into the heart of Kentucky and became known as the "Wilderness Road." That same year Boone built a fort and village called Booneborough in Kentucky, and moved his family over the Wilderness Trail to their new home.
Despite being built during the Civil War, funding was not a problem and every single one of the 2,000 miles of track was hand laid; going through mountains as well as terrain. Both companies finally met up at their midpoint completing the construction on May 10th, 1869; about four years after the end of the Civil War and six years after construction
Between 1840 and 1950, over fifty-three thousand people travelled the Oregon Trail. Native American exposure to diseases such as smallpox and diphtheria decimated the tribes, and that along with the encroachment of settlers on tribal lands, was the cause of much strife between Native Americans and the incoming Europeans. The Land Donation Law, a government land giveaway allotting three-hindred twenty acres to white males and six-hundred forty to married white couples, gave impetus to the western expansion and the American idea of "Manifest destiny." This promotion of migration and families also allowed America to strentghen its hold on Oregon, in the interests of displacing British claims.
Spearman, Frank H. "The First Transcontinental Railroad." Harper's Monthly Magazine, Volume 109 2011: 711-20. Web. 29 Sept. 2013. .
Ellis, Jerry. Walking the Trail: One Man's Journey along the Cherokee Trail of Tears. New
... line the canal today. The development of the railroad in the 19th century and the automobile in the 20th century sealed the fate of the Erie Canal.
Right in the middle of Waunakee is an artifact that brings us back to 1871 when the Waunakee Train Depot was built. When George C. Fish and Louis Baker found Waunakee it was originally just their land that tracks ran through, but when Waunakee was built
The Oregon Trail is a 2000 mile long wagon route and emigrant trail made by fur trappers and traders from 1811 to 1840. The trail was then only possible on foot or horseback. By 1863, the trail was cleared from Independence, Missouri, to Fort Hall, Idaho. The trail later kept being cleared until Willamette Valley, Oregon. Improved roads, cutouts, and bridges made the trip faster and safer every year. The Oregon Trail had three offshoots: the California, Bozeman, and Mormon trails. The eastern half of the trail spanned future Idaho and Oregon. The western half of the trail spanned part of future Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming. Modern highways pass through the same course as the Oregon Trail. It was sometimes called “The Highway of Hope”.
The current size, inherent values, and economic status of the United States owes greatly to the paramount figures and events that took place during the Early National Period of the country. However, while there is no doubt that such events- and the figures behind them- were of great importance and have molded the country into the pristine product that it is today, the various construction projects of that time have gone largely unnoticed. Canals, being one of the most prominent advances in transportation, are prime examples of forgotten catalysts of the American nation. The construction of canals- particularly the Erie Canal- during the 19th century played a key role in the geographic, economic, and cultural development of the country by allowing an easier and faster mode of transport, and contributing greatly to the preservation of the Union during the Civil War.
Lawson, Russell. "Excerpt from the Oregon Trail (1846, by Francis Parkman)." Dictionary of American History. Ed. Stanley I. Kutler. 3rd ed. Vol. 9. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2003. 222-224. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 18 Apr. 2014.