Me and My Watershed
Water and the Shape of Philadelphia
Learning Experience 3
Guiding Questions
In this learning activity, we will
�- give examples of how waterways in Philadelphia have stayed the same and have changed over time and describe some of the effects, both negative and positive, on the people living here.�- research, gather and collect stories through interviews with community members in order to get first person accounts of the how these changes have impacted their lives
1.3.5 Engage
Let’s describe the steps investigators take to solve a mystery.
In this activity, you will
How do investigators solve mysteries?
Think about how you can answer the question above. Jot your thoughts down on paper.
Think
Your teacher will signal when it’s time to turn and talk to your partner about how you answered the above questions.
Pair
Decide what you and your partner will share out with the class.
Share
Investigations start with a question that people want to answer. They go in search of evidence and start collecting clues. Their first clues usually lead to more clues, and they make inferences using the evidence they’ve pieced together to solve the mystery.
Historians are investigators who answer questions about events of the past. Their clues come from primary sources or secondary sources.
A primary source is an artifact, document, or other source of information that was created at the time under study. Primary sources represent real pieces of history such as inventions, letters, diaries, or photographs.
A secondary source is an opinion, account, or interpretation of a past event by someone who wasn’t actually there. Examples of secondary sources include painted images by artists who were not there at the time of an event, movies about historical events, and textbooks.
1.3.5 Explore and Explain Activity 1
Let’s become history detectives.
Let’s Investigate!
How has the movement of water shaped Philadelphia?
In this activity, you will
Directions
Directions Continued
Let’s discuss…
From the evidence and clues you analyzed how would you answer the question:
How has the movement of water shaped Philadelphia?
Exhibit A
Native Americans recognized the value of the two major rivers and their tributaries in the Philadelphia area, and therefore chose this land to settle. The Lenni Lenape tribe relied on water for food, drink, and transportation. They used the resources provided by the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers and their tributaries. They occupied these regions for thousands of years before Europeans appeared in the 1600s.
Exhibit B
William Penn also recognized the value of the two major rivers and their tributaries, and so chose the meeting point of the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers as the land where he would establish Philadelphia. The Delaware would give easy access to the Atlantic. The Schuylkill would give a transport route into the rest of Pennsylvania.
Exhibits C & D
TOP: The cove around the mouth of Dock Creek provided a natural harbor for Philadelphia, where goods could be imported and exported via the Delaware River.
BOTTOM: The original two square miles of the city were bounded by the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers on the east and west.
Exhibit E
This is a view of Christ Church . Rising to the height of 200 feet, it long dominated the city's skyline. Both George Washington and Benjamin Franklin worshiped in the church as did many of the city's most socially prominent persons.
This print is just one image of what city life looked like in the 1700s. Of particular note in regard to our topic are the things you don't see in the image: fire hydrants or sewers. Water management practices that are prevalent on our streets today did not exist in the 1700s.
Exhibit F
Philadelphia streets, streams, and any ponds on vacant lots were deemed useful as places for dumping waste. Besides the street, butchers and tanners (leather makers) dumped their waste in Dock Creek, which ran through the heart of the city. (This creek and other bodies of water also provided easy disposal for dead dogs, cats, and horses.) Just about everyone abused the public space disposed of wastes by dumping them in the “kennels” or gutters in the streets that ran past their businesses or homes. Add to all this mess the daily deposits of manure from the city’s horse population, and the “mud, muck, and mire” that filled the streets can scarcely be imagined.
Exhibits G & H
Yellow fever outbreaks plagued the city from its founding. While city officials did not know the true cause of the disease, they believed that providing clean water for both cleansing the streets and for cooking might help prevent another outbreak.
In 1900, American physician Walter Reed discovered that yellow fever was spread by biting mosquitoes that carried blood from infected people to uninfected people.
Exhibits I & J
Fire was a very serious threat to property in the closely built streets of Philadelphia. Benjamin Franklin organized the first volunteer fire company in 1736, — they were often ineffective, as they only had buckets and hand pump engines to work with. Many people argued for a public water works that would create a more effective means for fire-fighting .
1.3.5 Explore and Explain Activity 2
Let’s will watch a documentary video to understand why and how Philadelphians began to shape the course of water.
Exploration 2
In Exploration 1, we investigated how the movement of water helped shape Philadelphia.
In Exploration 2, we will watch a documentary that explains how Philadelphians began using technology such as pumping stations and pipes to shape a new course for water.
The video showed us that because of Philadelphia’s cleverly designed system of pumps and pipes, its citizens had a clean reliable source of water. And so, the city continued to grow and thrive.
As Philadelphia grew, the shape of its water continued to change. In the next activity, you will discover how these changes had consequences, both intended and unintended.
1.3.5 Elaborate
Let’s identify the intended and unintended consequences of shaping the course of water in Philadelphia.
What are intended and unintended consequences? Let’s break it down…
What do the following words mean?
consequences
intended
unintended
Think, Pair, Share
What do you think some intended consequences and unintended consequences were of these inventions?
Intended Consequence
Unintended Consequence
Intended Consequence
Unintended Consequence
Brief History
Philadelphia experienced continued growth in both its population and its land area from the its founding in 1682. The image to the right shows the change from William Penn’s original design (yellow), to what it looks like on a map today.
Philadelphia became an industrial giant, and people poured into the city for jobs. But where would these people live? How would they travel to and from work? How could they prevent the resulting waste from causing illness and disease?
These were all problems that designers and engineers were able to solve, but their solutions brought consequences, both intended and unintended .
The Solution
The city’s engineers and workers again shaped the course of Philadelphia's water by enclosing many of it’s streams and creeks in pipes…
…and then building houses and streets above them.
Notice how the city has changed. What is the same? What is different?
Then
Now
So what were the intended and unintended consequences of enclosing streams and creeks with pipes, and then building over them?
Take 5 minutes to record your ideas on the graphic organizer provided.
People needed housing and roads for travel in Philadelphia
Tributaries and the soil and vegetation around them were covered, and housing and streets were built above them.
People needed a clean, safe way to dispose of waste
Problem
Solution
Intended Consequences
Unintended Consequences
Streams and creeks were covered with pipes, creating a system of sewers underneath.
Sinkholes can occur when the water flowing through underground pipes and sewage systems experience drops in temperature.
Flooding can occur during fast and heavy downpours because water cannot be absorbed by impervious surfaces, such as asphalt and concrete.
People needed housing and roads for travel in Philadelphia
Streams and creeks were covered, and housing and streets were built above them.
People needed a clean, safe way to dispose of waste
Creating a system of sewers created more sanitary conditions and slowed the spread of disease and illness in the city.
The building of houses provided people a place to live. Roads, streets, highways, and transit systems provided ways for people to travel.
The underground water can sometimes cause sinkholes, endangering lives.
Paving the roads with asphalt and the sidewalks with concrete create surfaces that do not absorb water. This can create severe flooding during storms, threatening lives, housing, and jobs.
Problem
Solution
Intended Consequences
Unintended Consequences
Streams and creeks were covered with pipes, creating a system of sewers underneath.
In Conclusion…
Throughout human history, people have found and designed ways to reshape their environment to better meet their needs. As Philadelphia has grown, systems for maintaining clean drinking water and disposing of waste through sewers have been put into place to foster the health of its citizens.
However, it is has become clear that better designs are needed to help prevent catastrophic events such as sinkholes and flooding. For this reason, Philadelphia has undertaken an initiative called Green City, Clean Waters. To learn more, watch the video on the next slide, or visit this website.
Community Interview
Talk to members of your family or community. Find out:
Write down the answers/stories they told you.
Share your stories with your class.
What future do we want?
Who is affected by the changes we have examined?
Think about the words–
Resilience Restoration Rehabilitation
What future do I envision for my community? What role do I see myself playing in this future?
Respond to the questions above. You may respond in any media that you wish (words, images, art, etc).
1.3.5 Evaluate: Written Response
Give examples of how waterways in Philadelphia have stayed the same and have changed over time and describe some of the effects, both negative and positive, on the people living here.