A new technology began to offer a cheaper and faster way of moving goods
and people around the state. Just as travel and trade by canal became amore
efficient means of carrying freight than the Conestoga wagon, so too did
another invention come along to replace the canal system. Men who worked
along the turnpike, called Pike Boys, gave a clue in this song:
We hear nomore the clanging of hoof,
And the stagecoach, rattling by,
For the steamking rules the traveled world,
And the old pike is left to die.
That steamking was the invention of the
steamengine
and its application
to the railroad industry. Today, you can enjoy canal boat rides near the
Delaware River at the
National Canal Museum
in Easton and at the
Delaware
Canal State Park
in Upper Black Eddy. You also can visit the Allegheny Portage
Railroad near Gallitzin.
L
ET
’
S
R
EVIEW
1. What transportation innovation replaced the Conestoga wagon as amore efficient
means of moving people and goods?
2. What wasmeant by Canal Fever?
3. What was the name of the state built and operated canal?
4. Explain what the Allegheny Portage was.
5. List 4 advantages that Canal Fever provided the state of Pennsylvania.
6. Using at least three sentences, describe what life was like traveling by canal boat.
7. What was an aqueduct?
8. For what purpose were locks used in canal travel?
9. Describe the difference in time it took to travel fromPhiladelphia to Pittsburgh by
Conestoga wagon versus canal boat.
10. What invention replaced canals as amore efficient way of doing business?
Rides on canal boats are
still offered inNewHope,
Pennsylvania, on the
Delaware Canal, which
runs alongside the
Delaware River.
Pennsylvania Catches Canal Fever
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