Historic Tow Path

Tow Path along the Blackstone Canal

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The historic tow path is located just past the Kelly House Barn. It is the last remaining section of the canal tow path that is in its original state. Two horses would tow a 72' long barge up and down the canal at around 4 miles an hour. It took 2 days for a barge to travel the length of the canal. This was a huge improvement to the poorly maintained roads that connected Providence to Worcester. A typical barge would have a captain and 2 crew. One of the crew would be on the barge helping where needed, and the other would be guiding the horses along the tow path. Along with products made at the mills, barges were often used to transport food, limestone, people and other goods. While the canal was in use, there would have been no vegetation between it and the tow path.