Construction Costs and Locks on Early Canals Near Piqua
Prohibitive costs governed canal progress as banks rose with water levels, forcing repeated height adjustments and the use of locks to connect levels. In Shelby County near Lockington and Loramie Creek the Miami and Erie Canal required seven rock fills within a mile and an extensive aqueduct, with plans for a 26 foot bottom width and 40 foot water line width though actual dimensions varied widely from 60 to 150 feet.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Lockington
Shelby County
Piqua
Loramie Creek
Canal aqueducts and reservoirs shaped early state waterways
The text explains canal engineering across streams using stone arch culverts for small breaches and aqueducts for larger spans, preserving water levels. It details reservoir systems at canal summits, naming St. Marys, Laramie, Indian Lake, Buckeye Lake, and Postage reservoirs, tied to both the Miami and Erie and Ohio canals, and highlights the Hocking canal’s coal outlet role from 1826 onward, reaching Lancaster to Nelsonville and triggering coal development.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Miami
Erie
Ohio
St. Mary’s and
Laramie
Indian Lake
Buckeye Lake
Postage
Hocking Canal
Carroll
Hocking Valley
Athens
Lancaster
Logan
Nelsonville
Canal Struggles With Funds Delay Athens Connection
Work on the Hocking canal stalled in 1641 due to lack of funds, with only about one third of the distance to Athens completed. In 1842, favorable weather spurred rapid progress, boats reached Chauncey by July, and the canal extended to Athens with water turned on in September, triggering celebrations and a citizens trip to Logan on the first canal boat from Athens.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Athens
Board of Public Works
Hocking
Monday Creek
Hocking River
Chauncey Whence
Ewing, Vinton & Company
Logan
Canal and river spill way linked by saw mill power flow
The narrative describes a canal lock preventing river diversion and a spill way near West State street. Surplus river water entered the canal and, after powering a saw mill between the canal end and the river, returned to the river downstream. The arrangement combined bypass, power, and drainage without diverting the river through the canal.
Basin and turning basin on the canal at Athens
The canal end at Athens featured a basin enabling boats to turn around and face forward for canal travel. Warehouses around the basin stored incoming and outgoing goods, with salt producer Judge Samuel B Pruden shipping barrels by flatboat from Harmony to the canal ships via the dam and warehouse system on the canal bank.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Athens
Samuel B. Pruden
Harmony
Fast Mill Street
One by One Canals Are Abandoned
The piece notes how state owned canals declined with the rise of railroads, suffering floods and political meddling. The Hocking canal from Nelsonville to Athens was abandoned in 1874, and the Nelsonville segment after the February 1884 flood. For years no boats used the main lines, now only remnants supply power in places, with canals fading from memory as historic pages.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Hocking
Nelsonville
Athens
Logan recalling old scenes and perilous events
Old residents recount near-fatal stabbing at Lockbourne while Moorehead watered a horse near a saloon. Canal culture enabled skating, swimming, and fishing with abundant roach, catfish, and sunfish. A winter ice test led to a near tragedy as a boy and girl skated and the girl fell through.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Perry
Moorehead
Lockbourne
Montgomery
Rochester
Keynes
Lake Erie
Woman Rescued After Falling Through Ice into Cold Water
A woman fell into icy water and struggled to surface. She spread her arms to reach the edge of the ice and was pulled to safety by her companion who quickly assisted her back onto solid ground.
Bright brothers swim tragedy and canal decline memory
Warren Bright nearly drowned while his brother Fred Bright rescued him during a swim. Warren resides in Logan, while Fred became a lawyer in Minnesota. The arrival of the Hocking Valley railway reduced canal use, leading to its decline and abandonment, causing regret across Hocking County as the canal's romantic era faded.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Warren Bright
Fred Bright
Warren
Logan
Minnesota
Hocking Valley Railway
Hocking Canal
Hocking County
Hocking Valley
Also Mentioned on This Page
Chauncey
Hecning Valley Railroad
Lens
America
Dodge Brothers
C. A. Daugherty
Logan McAncur
Donse Brothens, Inc
Brother
Chvrolet
Ade and
Chevrolet
General Motors
Fisher
The
Moler Auto Sales Company
Baughman
Baughman Quality
Burson Chevrolet Co
McFarland
Nd Garage Co
Pai
Ani
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!