Fairmount Water Works

Hills of the Wissahickon Watershed
2014-09-27 09:00 - 11:00, 2014-10-25 09:00 - 11:00, 2014-11-22 09:00 - 11:00 (America/New_York) | Blue Bell Park, 842 W. Walnut Lane, Philadelphia, PA, 19144, United States
Meet at Blue Bell Park. Free parking. Also accessible via SEPTA bus route 65.
(This is a two-hour, two-mile loop hike over trails, roads, and some hills. Wear sturdy shoes or hiking sandals. All ages 8+ are welcome. Maximum group size 15.)
Join local “Rocks Burrow” resident and Fairmount Water Works environmental educator Sandy Sorlien as we tromp the wooded valley of the Wissahickon and Monoshone Creeks. We’ll learn the history, engineering, and ecology of several special sites. First we’ll walk downhill through the forest overlooking Forbidden Drive along with “Wiss”. A short walk up the Monoshone brings us to Rittenhouse Town, where the creek, also known as Paper Mill Run, provided water power in the 18th and 19th centuries to run the first paper mill in British North America Then and today, the Monoshone has collected stormwater runoff from the steep hills on both sides. Today we can see the contrast of wooded Fairmount Park on one side of Lincoln Drive and urban conditions on the other. We will cross the creek to Saylor Grove, a 3.2 acre park where more than half is a manmade wetland created by the Philadelphia Water Department to help manage stormwater runoff. This is a beautiful site with a diversity of plants and wildlife, including seasonal butterflies and waterfowl.
Your guide will put all these sites into a context of the larger Schuylkill River watershed, the urban water use cycle, the historic role of dams and mill races, and the ecology of our local streams.
Register here.

Science Saturday: Waterfowl
2014-09-27 14:00 - 16:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Learn what species have made the Schuylkill River their home and how the East Park Reservoir became the travel destination of choice for many birds. Find out about the history the East Park Reservoir and what has made both of these sites an ideal home or hangout for winged friends. Join in our activity that highlights water-loving birds from ducks to divers like the Cormorant.
Sessions run every 30 minutes from 2pm – 4pm

Sunday Cinema
2014-09-28 13:00 - 15:00, 2014-09-28 15:00 - 17:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Join us every Sunday afternoon starting in September for Sunday Cinema – a free series featuring movies and documentaries that surround a water theme. It’s a great family-friendly event, and we’ll show a different movie every month.

A Walk in the Park-way
2014-09-28 15:00 - 17:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
The last tour of the season!
Put on your walking shoes and discover the magnificent buildings along Philadelphia’s own Champs–Élysées – and what lies beneath them. Start at the Fairmount Water Works, where wheels once pumped the city’s drinking water, then embark on a mile-long stroll down the picturesque path from Fairmount Park to Logan Square, and back again.
Tickets

Mommies and Minnows, Fathers and Fry
2014-10-01 10:30 - 11:30 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Plunge into fun!
Head on down to the Fairmount Water Works, where parents and preschoolers ages 3-5 can learn all about water.
Join us Wednesday mornings, 10:30am- 11:30am from September 17th – October 22nd to splash around and discover new things about water through interactive story telling, movement activities, arts and crafts and hands-on experiments. This program is free of charge but preregistration is required. Space is limited.
Lesson: No Fowl Play! A lesson about the Schuylkill River Watershed’s native birds

Leave it Pigment
2014-10-04 14:00 - 16:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Do you wonder why leaves are green in the spring and summer, but change to red, yellow and orange in the fall? How do trees use water and how does that change in the winter?
We’ll investigate the different colored pigments in leaves, identify different leaves, and perform an experiment to show how one color is really made up of many different colors. Learn about the science of chromatography and make your own chromatogram.

Join us for this autumnal Science Saturday.

Norristown Around-the-Island Tour
2014-10-04 14:00 - 16:30 | Riverfront Park
Norristown Around-the-Island Tour
Circumnavigate Barbadoes! Did you know the largest island in the entire 130-mile Schuylkill River lies between Norristown and Bridgeport? Barbadoes was part of the original manor owned by William Penn, Jr. that included the “Town of Norris”. On this one-of-a-kind tour, we will hike and paddle from Norristown to Bridgeport and back, viewing all “coasts” of Barbadoes while soaking up riverfront lore.
Starting from Riverfront Park near the West End Historic District, we’ll walk along the former railway Schuylkill River Trail across Stoney Creek to the Dekalb Street Bridge. After crossing the bridge, we’ll visit the Norristown Dam Fishway before launching our dragon boat from the Upper Merion Boat Club dock. Knowledgeable local guides will provide background on Norristown’s important historic, environmental, and recreational connections to its river, our drinking water source. The walk is approximately two miles and the paddle is approximately a half mile.
Highlights of the route:
-Elevated views of the Schuylkill River and Stoney Creek
-Norristown Arts Center, adaptive reuse
-site of McCredy’s Mill, first large industry in Norristown
-1932 brick P&R Railroad Station
-Montgomery County Courthouse and Courthouse Square
-river views from DeKalb Street Bridge pedestrian walkway
-site of Norristown Canal on Bridgeport side, part of 19c Schuylkill Navigation System
-new Norristown Dam Fishway that enables the return of the American shad to our waters
-a short voyage in a dragon boat, around the northern tip of Barbadoes Island back to our starting place. Beginners and children 12 and older welcome!
Space limited to 15 people. Meet at Riverfront Park. Register.

Annual World Habitat Day
2014-10-06 17:30 - 20:15 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Join the United Nations Association (Philadelphia Chapter) for a special showing of the film “Urbanized”, a documentary that explores the diverse range of new city design projects from around the world.
Following the film, there will be discussion, Q&A, and a networking reception.
Click here for the full event flyer.
To RSVP, email info@una-gp.org.

About “Urbanized”
Urbanized is a feature-length documentary about the design of cities, which looks at the issues and strategies behind urban design and features some of the world’s foremost architects, planners, policymakers, builders, and thinkers. Over half the world’s population now lives in an urban area, and 75% will call a city home by 2050. But while some cities are experiencing explosive growth, others are shrinking. The challenges of balancing housing, mobility, public space, civic engagement, economic development, and environmental policy are fast becoming universal concerns. Yet much of the dialogue on these issues is disconnected from the public domain.

Mommies and Minnows, Fathers and Fry
2014-10-08 10:30 - 11:30 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Plunge into fun!
Head on down to the Fairmount Water Works, where parents and preschoolers ages 3-5 can learn all about water.
Join us Wednesday mornings, 10:30am- 11:30am from September 17th – October 22nd to splash around and discover new things about water through interactive story telling, movement activities, arts and crafts and hands-on experiments. This program is free of charge but preregistration is required. Space is limited.
Lesson: Fishin’ Around
Take a deeper look into the different species of fish in the Schuylkill River.

Leave it to Pigment
2014-10-11 14:00 - 16:00, 2014-10-18 14:00 - 16:00, 2014-10-25 14:00 - 16:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States

A Walk Along the Schuylkill River
2014-10-12 14:00 - 16:00 | PA
Current History: A Walk Along the Schuylkill River (Conshohocken)
Only a few decades ago, the Schuylkill River ran black with coal silt and no fish could survive. Yet now it is the 2014 Pennsylvania River of the Year! New fishways have been built over four dams, and the American shad have returned to the cleaner waters. If you’re not familiar with this restored Schuylkill flowing through Conshohocken, you’re in for a pleasant surprise.
The tour begins with a display of historic photographs at the Outbound Station coffee shop on the Schuylkill River Trail, to visualize the Borough’s role in the 19th century Schuykill Navigation System of dams and canals, and later the P&R railroad. Next we’ll go out on the Fayette Street Bridge for a panoramic view, then down along a riverfront path past the forlorn floodplain site of a 25-year eminent domain battle, to the spanking new Conshohocken Rowing Center. The return route along Elm and Hector Streets takes us through a revived neighborhood. We’ll learn how land use, street design, and urban patterns affect the health of the river, and what Conshohocken is doing with Green Infrastructure to filter stormwater runoff, the main polluter of our drinking water source today. Along the route we’ll note the historic architecture of the riverfront area, from mill worker housing to Washie’s Firehouse.
Our guides have a special perspective on the industrial and environmental connections among the region’s river towns, having led tours at the landmark Fairmount Water Works as well as Manayunk, Norristown, Phoenixville, and Conshochocken.
Space is limited to 15 people.
Register.

Canoemobile
2014-10-14, 2014-10-15 | East Park Canoe House, 2200 Kelly Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
The Wilderness Inquiry Canoemobile is a roving fleet of six 24-foot, 10-passenger Voyageur canoes that travels the country on a mission to get as many youth as possible out paddling on their local urban waterways.
As a part of its national tour of over 17 cities, the Canoemobile will create opportunities for minority and underserved youth in the four largest cities along the Lower Delaware River (Camden, NJ; Philadelphia, PA; Chester, PA; and Wilmington, DE) to experience, enjoy, and learn about the Delaware and its tributaries. Each canoe holds up to nine students/chaperones and one highly-trained boat captain, allowing participants who have never been on the water to have their first paddling experience. (No prior swimming or boating experience is necessary.)
Dates: October 14 & 15, 2014
Each day is divided into three 1.5-hour sessions:
Morning: 9:00 am to 11:30 pm
Afternoon: 12:00 pm to 2:30 pm
After school: between 3:00 pm and 6:00 pm
Click here for the Canoemobile Flier.
Call (612) 676-9400 to schedule your group.

River Dreams: History, Hope and the Imagination
2014-10-14 19:00 - 21:00 | PA
Author Beth Kephart will serve as the keynote speaker for the Schuylkill River Heritage Area’s 2014 River of the Year Lecture series with two special presentations on October 14 in Pottstown and October 16 in Philadelphia. Kephart is the acclaimed author of poetry, non-fiction and fiction, including Flow: The Life and Times of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River(Temple University Press, 2007). She will speak about the place the Schuylkill River has in her own imagination and teaching, the impact rivers have on all our lives, and the legacy of those who have worked to restore Philadelphia’s essential waterways.
The event is free, but please register.

Mommies and Minnows, Fathers and Fry
2014-10-15 10:30 - 11:30 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Plunge into fun!
Head on down to the Fairmount Water Works, where parents and preschoolers ages 3-5 can learn all about water.
Join us Wednesday mornings, 10:30am- 11:30am from September 17th – October 22nd to splash around and discover new things about water through interactive story telling, movement activities, arts and crafts and hands-on experiments. This program is free of charge but pre-registration is required. Space is limited.
Lesson: Falling leaves
Learn why leaves change colors in a lesson about the science behind autumn.

River Dreams: History, Hope and the Imagination
2014-10-16 19:00 - 21:00 | Trinity Center for Urban Life, 2212 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19103, United States

Mommies and Minnows, Fathers and Fry
2014-10-22 10:30 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Plunge into fun!
Head on down to the Fairmount Water Works, where parents and preschoolers ages 3-5 can learn all about water.
Join us Wednesday mornings, 10:30am- 11:30am from September 17th – October 22nd to splash around and discover new things about water through interactive story telling, movement activities, arts and crafts and hands-on experiments. This program is free of charge but pre-registration is required. Space is limited.
Lesson: An Apple a Day
Did you know an apple is made of 80% water? Find out more about how apples grow with the help of water.

Volunteer Orientation
2014-10-24 12:00 - 18:30 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
This orientation is the kickoff of our Volunteer Training Program. Throughout the program, volunteers will be provided detailed information about our site, exhibits, history, environmental messages, and architecture – along with shadowing current volunteers – all in time to help our staff with tours and events in the spring of 2015.
At this orientation, meet staff members, current volunteers, and learn more about how being a FWW volunteer can be mutually beneficial.
Refreshments will be provided.
*Registration for this orientation is now closed.*

Minerals Rock!
2014-11-01 14:00 - 16:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
There are some very old and special rocks that are found in Fairmount Park. Come and learn about the minerals that make up these rocks and how they formed hundreds of millions of years ago. We will investigate the geology of Philadelphia, show samples of local rocks and minerals, and even show how the water chemistry of the Schuylkill River has a lot to do with the rocks that it flows over.
This Science Saturday will be rockin’!

Minerals Rock
2014-11-08 14:00 - 16:00, 2014-11-15 14:00 - 16:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States

CLOSED (Veterans Day)
2014-11-11 08:30 - 17:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States

Love Your Park 2015 Fall Day of Service
2014-11-15 09:00 - 12:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
The LOVE Your Park program is a collaborative partnership between Philadelphia Department of Parks & Recreation and the Fairmount Park Conservancy to steward and support neighborhood parks throughout Philadelphia. The partnership works closely with neighborhood park friend groups to promote the network of parks across the city and the amazing work the friends groups do. Community engagement in neighborhood parks – whether it be weekly gardening days or concert nights in the summer – is key to maintaining our City’s parks as anchors in our neighborhoods for safe, welcoming and family-friendly recreation.
Fairmount Water Works is excited to be a participating site! Be sure to register for the day of service here.

World Toilet Day
2014-11-19 18:00 - 21:00 | Moshulu, 401 S. Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA, 19106, United States
The Philadelphia Global Water Initiative (PGWI) is excited to announce the transition to a new name, the Global Water Alliance.
This year, the United Nations General Assembly designated November 19th as World Toilet Day, urging changes in both behavior and policy on issues ranging from enhancing water management to ending open-air defecation. Join Global Water Alliance and our partners as we celebrate World Toilet Day on the beautiful Moshulu on the Delaware River.
Enjoy live jazz by Ong’s Hat, cocktails, and hor d’oeuvres as we celebrate World Toilet Day and raise awareness for global sanitation.

Sunday Cinema: March of the Penguins
2014-11-21 15:00 - 17:00 | Fairmount Water Works, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19130, United States
Join us every Sunday afternoon for Sunday Cinema – a free series featuring movies and documentaries that surround a water theme. It’s a great family-friendly event, and we’ll show a different movie every month.
