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September 2012 Number 3

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September 2012 Number 3 ALONG THE TOWPATH A quarterly publication of the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Association An independent, non-profit, all-volunteer citizens association established in 1954 concerned with the conservation of the natural and historical environment of the C&O Canal and the Potomac River Basin. VOLUME XLIV September 2012 Number 3 Annual Heritage Hike and Dinner Big Slackwater Towpath Restoration Set for October 20 to Be Dedicated on October 13 The Association’s annual Heritage Hike is set for Saturday, The National Park Service has nearly completed the resto- October 20, in the area of Hancock to Big Pool, near Fort ration of the closed section of the towpath at Big Slackwa- Frederick State Park. It will feature three hiking options ter. Brian Carlstrom, deputy superintendent of the C&O along the towpath, and an optional evening program with Canal National Historical Park, recently told the C&O Ca- happy hour, dinner, and speakers. The hikes will begin and nal Association board that the park expects to complete end in Hancock. The evening events will be held at St. Pe- work in September. The park has scheduled a dedication ter's Catholic Church in downtown Hancock. ceremony for 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, October 13, at the Note that this same hike was scheduled for the Dam # 4 boat ramp. Details will be forthcoming about the 2011 Heritage Hike. Unfortunately, the event was cancelled event, which marks the achievement of a major objective due to an unusual storm that closed the towpath. I hope all for both the park and the C&O Canal Association. who were disappointed last year will join us October 20 — Big Slackwater is a scenic section of the as well everyone else who would enjoy a fascinating section C&OCNHP in Washington County, Md., between Dam of the canal park. This is a great chance for new people to # 4 (mile 84.6) and McMahon's Mill (mile 88.1). The tow- become acquainted with C&OCA, so invite your friends! path here historically followed the bank of the Potomac, Hike participants will park their cars and meet the allowing boats to be towed along a quiet ("slack") part of shuttle bus in the Western Maryland Rail Trail parking lot the river. Once a popular section of the park, the Big Slack- in Hancock. Take Exit 3 from I-70 into Hancock and trav- water area suffered damage from floods in 1972, 1985, and el west on MD 144 for a half-mile. 1996. As a result, NPS closed public access, forcing hikers (Continued on page 5) (Continued on page 2) The C&O Canal National Historical Park at Big Pool, at the downriver end of the 2012 Heritage Hike route. Photo by Steve Dean. and bikers to make an unsafe 4.7-mile detour along public highest priority to restoring the damaged section. This was roads. This Big Slackwater closure was the only gap in the reflected in a list of "Unfunded Funding Components" historic towpath between Georgetown, D.C., and Cumber- distributed at the January 19, 2007, meeting of the park's land, Md. advisory commission. The estimated project cost was listed Restoration of Big Slackwater has been a top prior- as just over $15 million. ity for the C&O Canal Association and many other In 2005, C&OCA began a major effort to support organizations. The association provided critical funding at restoration of the Big Slackwater towpath and created a early stages of the project. As the restoration nears comple- new fund for that purpose. During the following year, tion, the association recently approved $25,000 for the in- C&OCA board member Tom Perry agreed to chair a com- stallation of wayside exhibits. mittee of local leaders dedicated to that goal (see his ac- NPS conducted an engineering study of Big Slack- count below). In August 2007, C&OCA contributed water in the 1990s. The C&O Canal NHP assigned its $15,000 as part of matching funds for a grant to support a new engineering study of the Big Slackwater project. To help support an Environmental Assessment of the restora- tion project, C&OCA on March 7 and April 2, 2009, made Historic Transportation Forum donations to NPS totaling $65,000. Scheduled for November 10 In May, 2009, the NPS announced that the C&O Canal NHP would receive $12.1 million for Big Slackwater This year’s forum on transportation in the C&O Canal under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act region takes place on Saturday, November 10, in the (ARRA). In January 2010, the state of Maryland announced Delaplaine Visual Arts Education Center in Frederick, the approval of $4.4 million in federal Transportation En- Md. Beginning at 9 a.m., the forum ends at 4:00 p.m., hancement Program funding for the project. Ground- followed by optional guided walks in the historic district breaking for construction took place on August 7, 2010, and a reception. and by early 2011, the contractor had deployed a heavy Presenters this year include: Lorna Hainesworth on crane at the site and barges on the river. the topic of the historic roads between Frederick and NPS and its contractor had to race the clock on Baltimore; Tim Snyder on C&O Canal navigation at the the project, because the ARRA required that all work be beginning of the Civil War; Dean Herrin on certificates complete by September 30, 2012. of freedom and Jim Crow laws affecting the mobility of African Americans; and Dave Shackelford on the B&O Railroad during the Civil War. The day will include opening comments by Frederick’s mayor and the coun- A Brief History of the Big Slackwater ty’s transportation planner. Restoration Committee The registration fee is $15, plus an additional $8 for those who may wish to reserve a simple lunch that will As the time approaches when the towpath through the Big Slack- be catered at the Delaplaine Center. There are multiple water area of the C&O Canal is to be reopened, it occurred to me restaurants and cafes in the area for those who prefer to that the major involvement of the C&O Canal Association, here- eat out during the lunch break. Online registration is after known as C&OCA, needs to be made part of the record. possible on the C&O Canal Association’s webpage: www.candocanal.org/2012forum.html. Registration may also As Chairperson of the Big Slackwater Restoration Committee, I be accomplished by mailing a check with the registration rejoice that our efforts have borne fruit and I want to recognize form inserted in this newsletter. (The form also lists the the labors of those who tirelessly moved us toward our goal. complete program of the forum). The deadline for reg- We are indebted to former Federal Advisory Commissioner istration is November 1. and C&OCA member, Ed Miller, for the catchy slogan, “No The forum partnership this year includes: the C&O Slack at Big Slack.” It had been ten years since persistent flood- Canal Association (the initiating partner); the National ing had forced the towpath in that area to be closed and the traf- Park Service; the City of Frederick; the Tourism Council fic diverted to a very dangerous detour consisting of narrow, of Frederick County; the Historical Society of Frederick winding, county roads with no shoulders. A 1998 “Final Report” County; Hood College; and the Catoctin Center for Re- from the National Park Service had envisioned a two-phase res- gional Studies. For further information call Craig Rob- toration that included a temporary path away from the river and erts at 301-834-7420 or send an email to Karen Gray at [email protected]. an eventual rebuilding of the stone masonry at its edge. The options would provide for the historical integrity of the 2 Along the Towpath, September 2012 towpath. However, the report stated that at that time, no fund- We had our disappointments along the way. Early on, ing was available. we approached the Washington County public schools in an at- Basking in the success of C&OCA’s push to have the tempt to promote public awareness through a county-wide poster Monocacy Aqueduct stabilized, C&OCA’s president (and my contest. We envisioned the students designing a logo for our brother) Bob Perry in 2006 envisioned our taking on the enor- project for which they would have been amply rewarded. But it mous challenge of securing public/private cooperation for re- was not to be. Also, the several organizations supporting the storing the only break in the continuity of the 184.5 mile long Great Allegheny Passage did not respond to our request for their national park. In February 2005, the C&OCA Board of Direc- support when, in actuality, the Slackwater area, if not restored, tors had transferred the balance of the funds from the Widewat- would have been the only break in a non-motorized vehicle pas- er account to a newly created Big Slackwater Fund. In his final sage from Georgetown to Pittsburgh. report to the members at the annual meeting, Bob lamented the Early on we had no idea where the enormous amount of lack of progress toward restoration. Letters had been sent to the funding ($14 million) would come from. We were simply moti- Washington County members asking their support. They were vated by the need to make known the dangers of the 4.7 mile invited to participate in a committee to spearhead the push to- detour onto narrow winding roads with no shoulders and fre- ward the goal.
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