The NJTPA hosted the biannual meeting of the Morris Canal Working Group (MCGW) on Dec. 2, with various reports and updates about efforts along the 111-mile Morris Canal Greenway.
Joe Macasek and Tim Roth of the Canal Society of New Jersey (CSNJ) provided updates on various projects during presentations at the virtual meeting.
The restoration of Lock 2 East has been completed. Mechanical parts for the lock have been installed and furnishings and exhibits for the Lock Tender’s House are planned as part of the final phase. Inclined Plane 2 East in Ledgewood is one of the most easily accessed points of the canal, Macasek said, with a restoration project completed. A pending interpretive sign project by the Canal Society will feature seven new panels and a park sign. Future work is planned to create a circular pathway.
Cooperation And Connectivity
Macasek described Boonton as among the best partnerships, featuring many pieces of the greenway. It’s “one of the best examples of cooperative effort and connectivity,” he said. The greenway trail in Boonton will be at the center of a greenway trail plan that will connect historic assets, including the Arch bridge, a railroad trestle that will be acquired by the town and made into a pedestrian walkway.
Restoration of the Arch Bridge, at the north end of the site, was completed this summer and will provide additional access to the Boonton Iron Works property. Restoration included a new pathway laid across the top of the bridge that has been standing since 1866, new rails and a new surface. It’s an important connection between the upper part of the site and the Iron Works and the inclined plane at the lower part of the site, Macasek said. CSNJ’s final sign project of the year will provide interpretive signage to tell people why the bridge is there.
Macasek described the Canal Society’s 2024 Greenway signage projects:
- JFK Park, Dover: Site of Dover Canal Basin
- Lock and New Streets, Newark: Site of Lock 16 East
- Canal Park, Ledgewood: Sites of Locks 9, 10, and 11 East
- Grace Lord Park, Boonton: Arch Bridge Restoration
- Griffith Park, Powerville: Site of inclined Planes 2 and 3 East
An ongoing restoration of the Collins House, associated with the inclined plane in Bloomfield, has progressed and will create a Morris Canal Greenway Visitor Center. “It gets us some visitor nodes along the greenway,” Macasek said.
Warren County portion of Morris Canal Greenway
Warren County recently acquired a site in Rockport, Mansfield Township, near a state game farm. The goal is to develop it into a greenway trail and then connect it to make one trail through Rockport. Initial efforts began last month with a trail surveying expedition. That involved “plunging into the woods,” looking at where the towpath is and devise a plan to develop a trail. Winter is a good time of year to start new trails because the brush is less thick and much less maintenance work is required, which typically takes up the warmer months.
The Museum at Meadow Breeze Park is a cooperative effort between Washington Township and the Warren County Parks Foundation, using many exhibits that are now at the Warren Heritage Museum at Bread Lock Park. The project is “moving at lightning speed,” Roth said, and is likely to open in 2025. “Hopefully, it will get this site more on the map.”
Like the Collins House in Bloomfield, the museum is not a direct canal asset and may not be entirely about the Morris Canal but a significant portion of it is.
Roth reported that the Warren Heritage Museum, and its monthly tours, remains closed after a huge storm in July 2023 undermined the vehicular bridge from Route 519. He hopes to report some progress on this at the MCWG’s spring meeting in May.
Morris Canal Greenway on AllTrails
Steve Krinsky reported that there are now 18 Morris Canal Greenway entries on the All Trails app. The trails are at least 1 mile or more in length though in some cases that includes out and back. Krinsky said his group of volunteers plans to hike and update map information on another half-dozen Greenway trails in the next few months.
A recording of the complete MCWG meeting is available here.