Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park
National Register Of Historic Places · Princeton, New Jersey
Seventy miles of linear state park along a canal that was dug by hand between 1830 and 1834 to carry Pennsylvania coal from the Delaware to the Raritan and on to New York. THE LABOUR WAS LARGELY IRISH IMMIGRANT AND THE DEATH TOLL FROM CHOLERA AND ACCIDENT WAS SEVERE — the exact number was never recorded, which tells you what the men were worth to the company. The main canal runs forty-four miles from Trenton to New Brunswick and the feeder canal runs twenty-two more up the Delaware, and the towpath is now a continuous flat gravel trail past hand-cut locks and bridgetender houses.
145 Mapleton Road, Princeton, New Jersey, 08540, United States
FREE, with free parking at most trailheads and no admission or permit — a seventy-mile linear park with dozens of access points rather than a gated site. Open dawn to dusk year round. THERE IS NO CENTRAL VISITOR CENTRE AND SIGNAGE BETWEEN ACCESS POINTS IS THIN, so download a map before setting out. SECTIONS FLOOD AFTER HEAVY RAIN and towpath and bridge repairs close stretches several times a year — check current closures. Seasonal canoe and kayak liveries operate at Princeton and Griggstown and should be booked ahead at weekends. Fishing requires a New Jersey freshwater licence. Some lock and tender houses are private residences.
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