The route initially consisted of canals and dammed-off sections of the Lehigh River. Both proved cornerstones of the Lehigh Valley's ascent as a central hub of the American Industrial Revolution, and their mining and transportation defined the rugged blue collar character of the Lehigh Valley towns that surrounded the canal.
At its height, the Lehigh Canal was 72 miles (116 km) long.Īlthough the canal was used to transport a variety of products, its most significant cargo was anthracite coal, the highest quality energy source then available in the United States, and pig iron, a vital input product used in manufacturing steel. In Easton, the canal met the Delaware and Morris Canals, which allowed anthracite coal and other goods to be transported further up the U.S. The lower section spanned the distance between Easton and present-day Jim Thorpe. It was built in two sections over a span of 20 years beginning in 1818. The Lehigh Canal is a navigable canal that begins at the mouth of Nesquehoning Creek on the Lehigh River in the Lehigh Valley and Northeastern regions of Pennsylvania. The Lehigh Canal in Glendon, Pennsylvania in 1979
