The year was 1825. New York City was on its way to becoming one of the major cities, not only in this country, but the world. There was a major problem, however. It was running out of fuel for its growing engine.

Shipments of "soft" coal from England had been greatly curtailed after the war of 1812 and the number of trees for burning wood was getting smaller. Without a new and lasting fuel source the growth of NYC, as well as the rest of the country, would come to a screeching halt.

Enter the Wurts Brothers. These two ambitious men devise a plan to transport a new and unproven fuel, "hard" coal, from northern Pennsylvania to NYC with a gravity railroad and a canal. To accomplish this daunting task they hire engineers that have just completed the Erie Canal in upstate New York. Unlike the Erie, however, the Wurts Brothers decide to build this system with private funds.

Ultimately the decision is made to build an ingenious 16 mile long "Gravity Railroad" from Carbondale to Honesdale, climbing the Moosic Mountains. From Honesdale a 108-mile long canal is built with 108 locks all the way to Eddyville, New York, near Kingston.

Using only picks, shovels, horses, wheelbarrows, a little dynamite and a lot of back-breaking labor, they begin the work in 1825 and complete it by 1828. It proves so successful that it is enlarged a couple of times in the mid-1840s and the early-1850s.

After 70 years of operation it no longer was practical to transport the coal and other materials on the canal when compared to using the railroads in the area. In 1898 the last coal boat made the trip from Honesdale to Eddyville. After the canal was closed it was drained and the canal land was sold. Though many portions have been destroyed, much of it remains. It is the goal of the D&H Conservancy to preserve what we can and make it available, once again, to serve the needs of the area, this time as a recreational trial. We hope you appreciate our efforts.