Franklin Street Guard Lock Bridge
Canal Heritage Mural
Status: Completed
Description:
In partnership with Reading Area Community College and the Olivet Boys and Girls Clubs Center for the Arts, a mural was painted this summer on the sides of the old Pennsylvania Railroad bridge over the now-buried Franklin Street Guard Lock at the northern entrance to the Port of Reading. The mural interprets the rich canal and rail history of this site.
 
Aerial Photo of the Franklin Street Photo of Canal Boat at
Guard Lock Penn Street, Reading
If you attended RiverFest, or if you've driven down Riverfront Drive since then, you've seen the spectacular new mural near RACC's Yocum Library. Painted by the Olivet Boys and Girls Club on the old Pennsylvania Railroad bridge over the even older and now buried Franklin Street Guard Lock of the Schuylkill Canal and Port of Reading. Depicting scenes from canal days, including the previous steel Penn Street Bridge and Edison power plant, it's a great addition to our Riverfront. Based on images provided by Berks County historian George Meiser, the mural was designed by local artists Mike Miller and Ed Terrell, and painted by youth members and volunteers of the Olivet Club. The results are truly spectacular.
The mural. entitled "Looking Back, Facing Forward", is located on the Franklin Street Guard Lock Bridge next to the Yocum Library on the Reading Area Community College's riverfront campus.
The bridge stands as a reminder of Reading's rich waterfront industry along the Schuylkill Canal in the 1800's, long before the importance of the railroad. the guard lock bridge is one of the few prominent features on the canal that remains visible, and which now serves as the canvas for the mural.
 An 1875 view of the Franklin Street Guard Lock from the west shore of the Schuykill River. The eight-sided stone locktender’s shelter was originally located on the “long island” side of the lock. “Long Island” was created when the Schuylkill Canal was dug along Reading’s riverfront.
In an effort to recognize both the present and the future of the city as well as its history, the artists researched archival images with the help of historian George M. Meiser IX, the Berks County Historical Society, and the C. Howard Hiester Canal Center. The monochromatic palette used for the mural reflects the cool water of the river as well as the black and white source photographs.
 Some children sit on a fallen log along the West Shore of the Schuylkill River in Reading. The large building in the background is Eli S. Fox’s Reading Terra Cotta Works, it sits behind the Franklin Street Guard Lock Bridge.
The structural supports of the bridge provide natural frames for the different scenes that appear on both sides of the bridge. Superimposed in front of the historic scenes are several iconic images of the youth who were involved in the project and who are to gain from the area's revitalization. These figures also represent the diversity of our city and beckons us as viewers to not only look at the history of the river, but to come and enjoy our rejuvenating waterfront.
 A canal boat is pulling into the open gates of Kelly’s Lock. The lock was named after locktender Vernon (Kelly) Kelichner.
Through a series of hands-on workshops, the project enabled over 100 teens and adult volunteers to work with professional artists and diverse members of the community to learn the art of mural making and better their environment through a community based public art project.
 The tugboat Dolphin, owned by the Schuylkill Navigation Company, was built in 1858. It had an iron hull and was often used to break up the ice in the canal. Today the pilot house is preserved in the C. Howard Heister Canal Center.
The project was facilitated by two local artists, Michael Miller and Edward Terrell. Both artists reside in the Reading area are dedicated to community projects and arts education. Without their significant contribution of countless hours of planning, research, instruction, implementation, this beautiful mural would not have been possible.
 The Carrie, an excursion boat capable of carrying 500 passangers at a time, took cruises down the canal to picnic sites at High’s Woods and Old Maid’s Woods (along Morgantown Road).
Thanks also to George M. Meiser IX, who graciously donated his services by allowing access to his archival photographs, and for providing the historical slide presentation about the Schuylkill Canal during "Riverfest 2005". Special thanks to the many teens and adult volunteers who supported the project and made this work of art happen!
 Metropolitan Edison’s Eyler Power Plant was built on the West Shore of the Schuylkill between 1909 and 1911. Coal was carried to the power plant via the Franklin Street Guard Lock Bridge.
The project was funded in part through a grant from the Youth Advisory Committee of the Berks County Community Foundation (YAC) as a means of providing fun and educational activities in the Reading area.
 Canoeing was a popular pastime along the canal. In the background is Kelly’s Lock
In addition to the YAC grant, the project received funding for the Reading Redevelopment Authority Fine Arts Committee, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the Pennsylvania Humanities Council. RiverPlace Development Corporation and Reading ARea Community College (RACC) were instrumental in helping to shape the project into a community wide collaboration that celebrates the arts and history of Reading.
 A view looking northward from the Franklin Street Guard Lock. The Schuylkill Canal runs beneath the 1884-1914 Penn Street Bridge. The Pennsylvania Railroad Depot can be seen on right side of the image.
But did you know there's a second mural "hidden" behind the bridge? Most visible to canoeists on the Schuylkill River, you can also view it just by walking over the to the Riverbank. This bonus mural depicts scenes in Reading as seen by canal boat captains and residents on the West Reading side.
If you or your organization would like to volunteer for a project team,
please contact us today! |
