River of Change

In the 1600s, Darby Creek may have looked much as it does here, and early in the nation’s history rivers served as routes for transportation and trade, drew people to convenient landing places, defensible sites, and crossings for overland travel, and supplied fish, game, timber, fuel, water, and power for sawmills and gristmills. Rivers also carried raw materials, merchandise, customers, and troops, while in some areas floods enriched farmland. With the arrival of efficient overland transportation, especially trains crossing the continent, settlements that had depended on rivers were bypassed and soon withered, and a riverside location no longer guaranteed prosperity. Today rivers still carry commerce in some places, with barges moving coal and grain, help generate electricity, irrigate fields, provide drinking water when treated, support wildlife, and offer recreation, while continuing to connect people to the world, the natural environment, and the past. The history associated with this place is outlined as periods before 1638 for Indians, 1638 to 1655 for New Sweden, 1655 to 1664 for Dutch dominion, 1664 to 1681 for English rule, 1681 to 1784 for the Pennsylvania colony, 1784 to 1870 for Americans, 1870 to 1935 for suburban development, 1935 to 1937 for building restoration, and 1937 to the present for a historic park.

Prospect Park, Pennsylvania · United States