At 184.5 miles long and with more historical structures than any other national park, the C&O Canal National Historical Park is always a work in progress. This summer, however, visitors will be able to enjoy the fruits of several big projects nearing completion. Read More
Each year, the C&O Canal Trust welcomes spring with our annual Canal Pride Days. These public events draw hundreds of volunteers from the community and allow Canal lovers to help ready the Park for the busy season by tackling a variety of preservation and maintenance projects. Read More
Visitors accessing the C&O Canal National Historical Park (NHP) at Edwards Ferry (Mile 30.8) will find a smooth surface running to Whites Ferry (Mile 35.5) – the first five miles of the towpath to be resurfaced as part of the Park’s proposed multi-year, 80-mile towpath resurfacing project. Read More
When the sun sets and the visitors have gone home, bats take to the skies over the C&O Canal National Historical Park. But these nocturnal and useful residents are facing a serious problem common to bats nationwide: White-Nose Syndrome (WNS).
April is Archeology Month in Maryland! To celebrate, we wanted to bring you a look at the archeological work that takes place along the canal. The C&O Canal National Historical Park is home to nearly 300 identified archeological sites that span back approximately 9,000 years. Many more exist that have not been documented.
Our favorite week of the year, National Park Week, kicks off April 20! This is a time to celebrate America’s treasures, discover history and culture, and help conserve our country’s valuable natural resources.
Here are eight ways you can celebrate! Read More
Canal Quarters lockhouses are popular for their historic charm, proximity to the towpath, and unique overnight lodgings. Through the years, the lockhouses have also been the destination for marriage proposals. Read More
Harpers Ferry and Bolivar
Harpers Ferry and Bolivar have been an epicenter of historic activity since their founding. Today, visitors can immerse themselves in the historic fabric of these towns and can also enjoy the many recreational and retail opportunities that make them unique. Read More
What’s it like to work in a national park? Would this be a good fit for me?
This spring and early summer, a group of teenagers from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in the National Park Service have had the opportunity to answer those questions as participants in a new Canal For All program developed by the Trust to inspire these young people to aspire to a career in the Park Service they may not have yet considered. Read More
It’s February, and spring is still weeks away. Sometimes the month brings a lot of snow; other times, there’s none. Below, we bring you 10 of our favorite things to do at the Park in the winter: Read More
With the re-opening of the government, the C&O Canal Trust, the official nonprofit partner to the C&O Canal National Historical Park (NHP), will be working closely with Park staff in the coming weeks to assess damage done to the C&O Canal NHP during the month-long closure, and to identify immediate and longer-term maintenance needs. The Trust will then leverage its extensive volunteer network to provide boots on the ground to take care of those projects suited to the capacity and skills of community volunteers. Read More
January 5 is National Bird Day, the perfect time to share with you the results of the 2018 C&O Canal Bird Count, which was conducted in January and February 2018 by 17 volunteers led by James Speicher. Read More
Happy New Year to everyone! With the holidays behind us, we now turn to achieving those New Year’s resolutions. Here are some C&O Canal-inspired resolution ideas for you: Read More
The Trust is able to make a positive impact along the 184.5-mile length of the Park only with the support of our donors and the help of committed volunteers. In fiscal year 2018, 1,302 Trust volunteers performed 10,032 hours of service, worth $281,690 in in-kind labor.
Longtime Park and Trust volunteer and former Trust Board Member Robert Mertz won the George and Helen Hartzog Award for Outstanding individual Volunteer Service for the National Capital Region for the work he did in 2017. Read More
Following a yearlong process, the C&O Canal Trust has launched its new strategic plan, covering 2019 to 2023, that lays out ambitious but achievable goals to strengthen private support for the C&O Canal National Historical Park (NHP) through philanthropy, volunteerism, and advocacy. Read More
The C&O Canal Trust is rehabilitating Swains Lockhouse to prepare it to join the Canal Quarters program. Former residents of this lockhouse, the Swain family, have decades of memories from their life in the house, when they endured several floods and crafted methods for protecting their home through necessity. Visitors can see the metal high water markers on the side of the house placed by family and various official entities. Bert Swain, who lived at Lock 21 from 1957-1980, generously shared his family memories and photos for this post.
Enjoy the beautiful vistas of the C&O Canal National Historical Park all year long with our 2019 Annual Calendar. Read More
The C&O Canal Trust is rehabilitating Swains Lockhouse at Lock 21 to become the newest addition to the Canal Quarters program. Bert Swain, who lived at Lock 21 from 1957-1980, generously shared his family memories and photos for this post about changes to the lockhouse and the family business over the years. Read More
Get out your cameras! The C&O Canal Trust sponsors a monthly photo contest highlighting the best photos you have taken of the C&O Canal National Historical Park. Read More
Flood History
With its location along the Potomac River, it’s not a matter of if the C&O Canal and its lockhouses will be flooded but when. The Canal has experienced flooding ranging from inconvenient to destructive throughout its history. In early June of this year, the Potomac reached its highest level in 8 years as rehabilitation work continued at Swains Lockhouse. Read More
The C&O Canal Trust will be hosting its Eighth Annual Park After Dark gala event on Saturday, September 15, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. to benefit the C&O Canal National Historical Park (NHP). This unique event is held under the stars at the Historic Great Falls Tavern within the C&O Canal NHP and features live music, great food, libations, a silent auction, a campfire, and more. A paddle raise will also be held to raise funds to make long-term sustainable repairs to the towpath and fix damage from the recent flooding. Read More
Canal Quarters Program
The Canal Quarters program hosts visitors for overnight stays in lockhouses to deepen their appreciation for the Canal’s history. Each lockhouse has been furnished to represent a time period in American history, allowing visitors to step back in time and experience life as a lock keeper once lived. Swains Lockhouse is currently being rehabilitated and will be furnished as it could have appeared in 1916, with some creative liberties in the amenities and an ADA-accessible first floor. Read More
Here are some recent shots of the progress being made at Swains Lockhouse! The contractor is 40% finished. They have completed the electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work on the first floor and have moved to the second floor. Read More
The C&O Canal Trust will be holding its first-ever C&O Canal Giving Days April 21-29, 2018, coinciding with National Park Week. C&O Canal Giving Days is an opportunity for the community to make financial gifts to support the ongoing preservation and beautification of the C&O Canal National Historical Park. Read More
Two years ago, we announced the rehabilitation of Swains Lockhouse and successfully raised $75,000 for the project. Well, the wheels of historic preservation sometime turn slowly, and we encountered several delays while we looked for a contractor who could restore Swains to its former glory in a fiscally-responsible manner. We persevered and are thrilled that construction began last week on the rehab! Read More
The C&O Canal Trust will be hosting a clean-up event at Lock 8 in the C&O Canal National Historical Park to mark the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service Monday, January 15. Approximately 30 volunteers from the local area will be removing invasive winter plants and picking up trash around Lock 8, located off Clara Barton Parkway in Cabin John, Montgomery County, MD. Read More
The C&O Canal National Historical Park was awarded $3.45 million from the Transportation Alternatives Program through the Maryland Department of Transportation, thanks to the vocal support of the C&O Canal Trust and the greater canal community: $2.45 million for “A Rewatered Canal” and $1 million for “Towpath Rehabilitation: A Safe Towpath.” Read More
The C&O Canal Trust will be installing 15 new benches in 2018 in the C&O Canal National Historical Park at popular access points between Swains Lock and Cumberland, thanks to philanthropists Daofeng He and his wife Angela Yang Cui. The couple is making the donation in appreciation for the Park and to provide a much-needed amenity for visitors upriver from Great Falls. Read More
Winter is a wonderful time to experience the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park (C&O Canal) on your own, with a friend, or by attending a special event or ranger program. The park is open daily and visitors are welcome to join rangers for the following fun and exciting activities, December through February. Read More
We are in the peak fall foliage season here in Maryland, and we have collected some of our favorite photos of the canal bursting with color!
Where possible, we have linked the photos’ descriptions to their locations in the C&O Canal National Historical Park so you can go out and see the beautiful fall color for yourself! Read More
The C&O Canal Trust recently welcomed three new members to the Board of Directors, John Schnebly, Anthony Stacy, and Anne Wallace. Read More
The C&O Canal Trust hosted the first participants in its new Canal For All initiative this spring, demonstrating the popularity and promise of the program aimed at building relationships with diverse communities along the C&O Canal. Read More
The C&O Canal Trust announced today that the National Park Service Centennial Challenge Program has provided a $100,000 matching grant to support the rehabilitation of Swains Lockhouse in Potomac. The grant, supported by Maryland Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, will be matched by $108,160 raised by the C&O Canal Trust, the Friends of Historic Great Falls Tavern, and the C&O Canal Association. It will be used to fund deferred maintenance on a critically-endangered lockhouse. Read More
The rehabilitation of the Conococheague Aqueduct in Williamsport has begun — you can learn more here! We thought it would be appropriate to take a look at the history of the aqueduct as it enters a new phase of its life. Read More
The C&O Canal Trust announces the release of its new mobile app, “C&O Canal Explorer,” to aid users in exploring the 184.5 miles and 20,000 acres of the C&O Canal National Historical Park. The app is available for download on both Android and Apple devices from their respective app stores.
As Aaron Siskind once said “Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever….It remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” Read More
Interested in a wild and wonderful combo of cutting-edge theater, outdoor adventure, and sight-seeing? If so, visit Shepherdstown, West Virginia in July! Read More
