08/18/2026
A Wonderful Addition to the Lock House Collection!
Recently, this incredible artifact was purchased and donated to the Lock House Museum by none other than the amazing Julie Ruhnke!
According to the documentation, the Susquehanna & Tidewater (S&T) Canal was funded through a combination of bonds and stocks issued by the Susquehanna Canal Company beginning in 1835. By the 1860s, those bonds were beginning to come due, creating a significant financial obligation to the bondholders. This debt was a major factor in the Susquehanna Canal Company’s eventual sale of the canal to the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company in 1872. As part of that sale, the railroad assumed the obligation for the outstanding bonds.
This artifact is an original Coupon Bond of the Susquehanna Canal Company, which was subsequently assumed and extended by the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad. What an incredible piece of our canal history to now have in the Lock House Museum collection!
Thank you, Julie, for this wonderful donation—and for all of the time, heart, blood, sweat, and tears you have poured into the Lock House over the years! Your dedication to preserving our history and supporting the museum means more than you know. To say that we have the best volunteers and community support would be a tremendous understatement.
We are so fortunate to have people like you helping us preserve these stories and treasures for generations to come! Please stop by the Museum to see our most recent artifact!
&TCanal
