Wharton’s Canal Day returns Saturday, Aug. 22, 2026, putting one of Morris County‘s oldest community festivals a short drive west of Denville.
The Borough of Wharton has the event running from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Hugh Force Canal Park and the adjacent Betty Poyer field, 180 West Central Ave. The borough’s announcement lists live music, food trucks, vendors, kids’ activities and a beer garden.
Canal Day is built around the Morris Canal, the 19th century waterway that hauled coal and iron across northern New Jersey and shaped the towns along its route. Wharton is home to Lock 2 East, which sat buried for decades after the canal was abandoned in the 1920s. The borough and the Canal Society of New Jersey dug it out and rebuilt both the lock and the lock tender’s house. The lock works again, and the house is furnished as though the tender and his family never left.
The Morris County Historical Society is running free guided walking tours of that site during the festival at 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Each tour begins at the interpretive panels at the parking lot end of the water-filled canal and follows the canal to Lock 2 East. Tours go on rain or shine, and pre-registration is required. Registration questions go to mchsacornhall@gmail.com.
Vendors and food truck operators still hoping for a spot are directed to Municipal Events Services, the borough’s event manager. Wharton notes that MES is the only authorized contact for vending at the festival.
Photo credit: Borough of Wharton
