Rivers offer the perfect framework for a storyteller. They provide a beginning and an end with an obvious flow from one to the other. They neatly link people and events in history. They serve as paths of discovery and arteries of commerce. Not only can rivers be counted on for moments of great drama, but the also invariably attract their share of eccentric characters. So it is with the Susquehanna.

This then is the Susquehanna’s story. It also is the story of people who struggled mightily to transform the river into something nature never intended, often at a terrible price. Indeed, the history of the Susquehanna is one of repeated assaults–by humans and the river.

The early race to control the riches of the Susquehanna extracted a toll. Canal builders diverted water and erected obstacles that impeded those who once traveled the river freely. Waves of loggers and miners laid bare the hillsides and opened veins of coal. The river retaliated with rampaging floods, but ultimately descended into squalor, choked with filth from the towns and industries that grew along its banks.

Today’s problems appear more subtle, but nevertheless pose daunting challenges to the Susquehanna. Even such a seemingly benign neighbor as farming has inflicted serious harm. Experts are only beginning to understand the mysterious synergies that operate in the fragile ecosystem dominated by the Susquehanna.

One thing has become obvious, however. The focus of responsibility has shifted. No longer is it a simple matter of pointing to someone else and affixing blame. Rather, the mundane daily decisions made by all who live within its vast watershed will determine the future of this beautiful river.

Susan Stranahan
Susquehanna, River of Dreams
Used with permission