Schuylkill Navigation Company Stock Certificate (1870's)

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Seller: Top-Rated Plus Seller ghostsofwallstreet ✉️ (15,123) 100%, Location: Cold Spring, New York, US, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 302243139080 Schuylkill Navigation Company Stock Certificate (1870's). Schuylkill Navigation Company Stock Certificate
The Schuylkill Navigation Company was chartered in 1815 to build a series of navigation improvements in the Schuylkill River. A 108-mile waterway was completed in 1827 linking Philadelphia to Port Carbon in the anthracite coal fields above Pottsville, Pennsylvania. Combining 62 miles of separate canals with 46 miles of slackwater pools, the Schuylkill Navigation utilized 92 lift locks to overcome a 588-foot difference in elevation between its terminal points. It also featured the first transportation tunnel in America. This 450 foot bore through a hill near Auburn, Pennsylvania, was completed in 1824, but due to increased traffic, it was bypassed in 1857. Due to its ability to transport bulk cargoes and provide water power, the Schuylkill Navigation transformed the towns of Reading, Norristown, and Pottsville into early manufacturing centers. By using the Delaware River and the Delaware and Raritan Canal, manufactured products and anthracite from the Schuylkill Valley could also reach New York Harbor. The Schuylkill Navigation system quickly assumed a monopoly position in the transportation of coal from the Schuylkill anthracite mines to Philadelphia. By 1841 the Schuylkill Navigation was annually transporting over 737.517 tons of cargo. However, in 1841 the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad was completed as a competing means of transporting coal from the Schuylkill anthracite fields to Philadelphia. A rivalry between these two forms of transportation soon developed. By 1845 the railroad was able to haul three times as much anthracite to Philadelphia each year as the Schuylkill Navigation. To counter this threat, the Schuylkill Navigation Company began a major expansion program. By 1847 the canals had been enlarged to allow the passage of boats carrying 230 tons of coal. In 1850 a price fixing arrangement with the railroad stabilized prices for the transportation of anthracite. This decade was the Schuylkill Navigation's most prosperous period, transporting 1,700,000 tons of cargo during the peak year of 1859. However, in that same year the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad carried over 2,500,000 tons. During the 1860s the canal entered a period of decline. In 1869 it was damaged by a flood. Surrendering to the competition in 1870, the Schuylkill Navigation Company leased its waterway to the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad for a period of 979 years. Under the railroad's control, the Schuylkill Navigation continued to decline. Since the Delaware and Raritan Canal was owned by the competing Pennsylvania Railroad, Schuylkill boats were denied access to this important New Jersey waterway. As a result, traffic on the Schuylkill decreased rapidly. By 1890 only 144,994 tons of cargo passed through the Schuylkill Navigation. The Schuylkill Navigation was also greatly hindered by the problems of coal silt deposits which made its upper sections almost unusable. By 1891 the portion of Navigation above Port Clinton was abandoned. By 1904 the anthracite traffic had almost completely ceased, and after 1913 only an occasional cargo passed between Port Clinton and Philadelphia. Excursion vessels and pleasure boating remained active on the Schuylkill Navigation until much of the waterway was destroyed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania during 1947-1979 in efforts to remove coal silt from the Schuylkill River.
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