This is a piece of the 19th century preserved in the heart of modern-day Georgetown (Thomas Jefferson and M Streets, NW). Like a silent, engine-free glider, this mule-driven barge cuts a surprisingly serene path through the city.

The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (and towpath) was started in 1828 and was originally envisioned as a commercial highway linking Georgetown and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was never completed due to construction hurdles and competition from the Baltimore & Ohio railroad.

Today the canal extends 184 miles - up to Cumberland, Maryland and is a tourist attraction maintained by the National Park Service. Tourists board this mule-towed barge (the "Georgetown") and ride it a little less than a mile out of the center of Georgetown - going through at least one antique, wooden water lock.

I call this photo, shot in October 1999:

The C&O Canal hugs the course of the Potomac and was designed to bypass un-navigable rapids along the river; - water locks were used to adjust for differences in elevation. Mule trains walking along a towpath adjacent to the canal hauled industrial-age goods and coal up to and down from Allegheny coal country during the 19th century.

Today that towpath, seen here on the right side of the canal, is an ideal hiking and biking trail.

Georgetown is the terminus of the canal; - from Georgetown the Potomac is navigable south to the Chesapeake Bay, and ultimately the Atlantic Ocean.

I call this photo, also shot in October, 1999:

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First Posted 11/10/99