Photo by Deb Stevens.
Park staff, volunteers, and visitors observed the C&O Canal National Historical Park’s 45th birthday with birthday cake, music, and 19th century games at Great Falls Tavern, on Saturday, Jan. 9. Thirty years of public debate over the future of the “Grand Old Ditch” ended on Jan. 8, 1971 when President Nixon signed legislation creating the C&O Canal National Historical Park.