Burlington’s waterfront is a meeting place – between land and water, industrial history and recreational present, of human and natural communities. As you walk the promenade boardwalk, or ride on the bike path, you are experiencing the culmination of a rich history of both human manipulation and nature’s processes. You are sharing this space with the plants and animals that use the area to access water and build dens and nests to raise young. The waterfront is the interface where ecosystems, industrial systems and cultural systems mingle together to create a rich interwoven legacy.

With this website, we are telling the stories that we revealed when we delved into this legacy. Please enjoy our stories. However, we know that the waterfront is also a community meeting place, and we would love to hear your stories. Please share.

Finally, the waterfront is dynamic. Future planning, natural events and changing cultural values will morph the waterfront into new forms through the years. As we tell the story of the past and present, we are also looking to see how we can inform what the waterfront will become. 

Start your exploration of Burlington's waterfront by going back in time...

Music in video: Silence Speaks. From album The Water is Wide. Artist David Modica. www.opensourcemusic.com.