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Erie
Canalway National Heritage Corridor
Celebrates
NPS Centennial Accomplishments
|
Waterford,
NY – January 2017 / Newsmaker Alert / As
the National Park Service embarks on
its second century of service, Erie
Canalway National Heritage Corridor in New York is celebrating the
significant accomplishments of its centennial celebration and engagement
with the Find Your Park / Encuentra Tu Parque initiative.
Erie
Canalway NHC programs and visitor information helped thousands of visitors,
students, and residents find their way to New York’s legendary canals,
Erie Canalway Trail, historic sites, and canal communities in 2016.
-
EveryKid
in a Park – More than 8,600 students took free field trips to 13 historic
canal sites and four national parks in the Erie Canalway thanks to innovative
partnerships and funding spearheaded by Erie Canalway NHC. Students stood
on the battlegrounds of the American Revolution, witnessed the place where
women’s rights were first declared, and saw firsthand the innovation and
grit that built the Erie Canal.
-
Find
Your Park – Erie Canalway NHC produced five themed itineraries, released
a new website, and gave out 100,000 Erie Canalway visitor guides and site
directories in 2016 to help people find their way to great canal experiences.
-
Canal
Events and Celebrations – Erie Canalway NHC partnered with the NYS
Canal Corporation to sponsor 25 community events and cross-corridor tours.
This sponsorship was augmented by contributions from local businesses,
nonprofits, villages and towns, along with an army of volunteers who invested
over $730,000 in their communities for these events. Canal-related festivals
and events drew more than half-million people to the canal corridor to
discover great places, regional foods and beverages, and fun experiences
along the waterway.
-
National
Historic Landmark nomination – The Erie Canalway National Heritage
Corridor, in partnership with the NYS Canal Corporation, spearheaded nomination
of the NYS Canal System as a National Historic Landmark in 2016. Final
review by the Secretary of the Interior is underway and a determination
is anticipated early in 2017.
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Economic
Impact – An economic impact study of the Erie Canalway conducted by
Tripp Umbach and released in 2016 found that the Erie Canalway National
Heritage Corridor generates $307.7 million in economic impact, supports
3,240 jobs, and generates $34.9 million in tax revenues.
“We are
honored to carry out the mission of the National Park Service here in the
Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor and to celebrate 100 years of
stewardship of our nation’s most significant sites and stories,” said Bob
Radliff, Executive Director of the Erie Canalway NHC. “2016 has been an
exceptional year and we expect the upcoming bicentennial celebrations of
the Erie Canal and the 2017 World Canals Conference in Syracuse to draw
even more attention New York’s extraordinary canal heritage in the New
Year.”
Erie
Canalway NHC’s Programs Contributed to Overall Success of the NPS Centennial
Across the country, centennial programs resulted in a significant level
of public interest and social media engagement with the National Park Service
and National Park Foundation. The NPS, NPF, and partners nationwide reached
hundreds of millions of people with the centennial’s Find Your Park message,
and engaged the public in the NPS stewardship mission.
“I
like to say the NPS is the only federal agency with a mandate to ensure
the public has fun, and the centennial has been a lot of fun,” said National
Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “But more importantly, it has
inspired and engaged a new generation to take on the mantle of responsibility
for the most important places and stories that define us as citizens of
the United States of America.”
More
information about the success and long term legacy of the NPS Centennial
is available online here: www.nps.gov/subjects/centennial/success.htm.
About
the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor
Nearly
200 years after its construction, the Erie Canal remains an iconic symbol
of American ingenuity and determination. The Erie Canalway National Heritage
Corridor preserves our extraordinary canal heritage, promotes the Corridor
as a world-class tourism destination, and fosters vibrant communities connected
by more than 500 miles of waterway. We achieve our mission in partnership
with the National Park Service, New York State agencies, non-profit organizations,
local residents, and more than 200 communities across the full expanse
of upstate New York. www.ErieCanalway.org
About
The National Park Service
More
than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 413 national
parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local
history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at
www.NPS.gov,
on Facebook Facebook.com/nationalparkservice,
Twitter Twitter.com/natlparkservice,
and YouTube YouTube.com/nationalparkservice.
Media
Contact:
Jean
Mackay
Director
of Communications
Erie
Canalway National Heritage Corridor
518-925-6721 |
