Canal Fever: The Ohio & Erie Canal, from Waterway to Canalway

ch18. Epilogue: The Trail Ahead

Chapter 18 Epilogue The Trail Ahead peg฀bobel฀and฀lynn฀metzger We are a canal state. . . . It is the canals that began to change this region of the country from frontier wilderness to what we experience today. The canals were built to make the wilderness into an urban state, now we’re using the canal or the towpath, to put the wilderness back into an urban state—it’s a reversal of roles. —Congressman Ralph Regula, 2006 When S. S. Dustin wrote about the canal in 1888 as though it were already a historic relic and Pearl Nye sentimentally called it the “Silver Ribbon” in the 1930s, they could never have envisioned the current renaissance of the old canal and towpath. The concept of preserving such historic features developed in the American mind in the 1960s. So the old and neglected Ohio & Erie Canal that began as a transportation system in a wilderness and spurred economic development has become a regional resource for recreation, education, and a new form of economic development . The ribbon is being reconnected through cities, towns, villages, and countrysides, transformed by the reconstructed Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail and serving the same region it did when it was built 150 years ago. But the Ohio & Erie National Heritage Canalway is more than its signature Towpath Trail; it is a wide swath of geography designated by the Ohio & Erie Canal National Heritage Corridor Act of 1996. It is also more than connected land and trails; it is connected spirit, the rallying ฀ 363 364฀ peg฀bobel฀&฀lynn฀metzger point around which diverse neighborhoods and people, ranging from those found in central Cleveland to those in rural Bolivar, came together to develop this multiuse regional resource. The story of the Ohio & Erie Canal and Canalway is still unfolding. Some think it is a tale of continuous movement and constant improvement . Yes, it will always be subject to change, but that change is actually more about people than the trail. Surely, the story of the current renaissance , the canal fever that began in the 1960s and bloomed in the 1990s, is one of enormous grassroots and regional organizational eVorts, which continue to grow. The trail ahead has many challenges, but the same groups that began the movement some twenty-five years ago will guide travelers along it. New voices add expertise to the eVort and energy to the journey, but the vision remains constant. What does the trail ahead look like? What is yet to be accomplished to complete the Ohio & Erie National Heritage Canalway? Many of the advocates and leaders who were interviewed for Canal Fever answered that question simply: “Finish the trail.” Others reminded us that there is more to completing the Canalway than just redeveloping the core trail; there are visitor centers to complete, stories to tell through interpretation at the centers and in wayside panels along the trail, and historic and natural resources to preserve. Then there must be signs to point directions and identify historic and natural features and amenities. And, finally, the Ohio & Erie Canalway must be marketed as a local, regional, and national heritage area. Although those who live near, use, and love the Canalway are invested in it, its sustainability also depends on people visiting from hundreds of miles away. Those visitors must find their destination easily, enjoy the experience, have a good lunch, and spend time and money here. So the trail ahead includes not only completing the Towpath Trail but also creating a total cultural heritage experience. Further, it includes a commitmenttosustaintheCanalwayinthefuture ,acommitmentassumedlargely by such entities as the county park systems and local municipalities. To bring the story of canal fever from the building of a waterway to its makeover as a Canalway, several interesting, challenging, and unique projects illustrate various elements of what lies ahead. These include the completion of the Towpath Trail, Confluence Park in south Akron, and connector trails into neighborhoods up and down the Canalway. The trail sections and other remaining projects are among the most difWcult and expensive along the route, but, again, partnerships forged during the early stages of the Canalway’s creation are now helping planners and managers creatively accomplish their goals. Without a doubt, the epilogue฀ 365 most challenging trail ahead for construction of the towpath is the last few miles at the northern end of the Canalway, from north of Harvard Road to Canal Basin Park, a planned visitor gateway in the heart of Cleveland. These...