As early as 1829, Antoine Dutot saw potential for a profitable resort industry at the Delaware Water Gap and began construction of the first Kittatinny House overlooking the Delaware River. After the arrival of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad in 1856, other hostelries of various sizes and appointments followed and were soon filled each summer with happy vacationers from New York City and Philadelphia. Residents of surrounding villages on both sides of the Delaware River also shared the seasonal wealth of this natural playground, yet they still managed to make a living during the rest of the year. River Towns of the Delaware Water Gap salutes the grand hotels, their diminutive 'little sisters,' and the people who ran them or lived in the gap and its neighboring river towns.