Climate change forces pennsylvania’s historic landmarks to choose between adaptation and destruction

Standing in what was once a bustling public swimming pool, Karen Young surveys the remnants of Philadelphia’s past while contemplating its uncertain future. The abandoned natatorium, part of the historic Fairmount Water Works along the Schuylkill River, tells a story becoming all too familiar across Pennsylvania—how climate change is forcing the state’s most cherished historical sites to either adapt or face destruction.

The Fairmount Water Works, a 200-year-old architectural marvel that once powered Philadelphia’s entire municipal water system, now serves as both an interpretive center and a stark example of the challenges facing water-adjacent landmarks. Abandoned after hurricane damage in 1972, the old swimming pool represents the growing vulnerability of Pennsylvania’s historical treasures as extreme weather events become more frequent and severe.

As climate change intensifies flooding and increases rainfall across the region, Pennsylvania’s riverside and waterfront historical sites find themselves on the front lines of environmental transformation. These irreplaceable cultural landmarks, many dating back centuries, were built long before anyone could predict today’s climate realities. Now, their caretakers face difficult decisions about how to preserve these pieces of American heritage while protecting them from increasingly unpredictable weather patterns.

The situation at Fairmount Water Works reflects a broader crisis affecting historical preservation efforts statewide, where rising waters and extreme weather events are forcing communities to weigh the costs of expensive adaptations against the irreplaceable loss of their cultural identity.