Existing comment:
The Middle Locks
Navigating Batteaux Vertically:
When the Roanoke Navigation Canal was built between 1819 and 1823, plans included locks at both ends and four "middle locks" at the location directly ahead. Stonemasons and slaves cut the rock from local quarries and transported them to the building site for final footing and smoothing. Some of the larger stones are estimated to weigh over three tons and were moved using only physical labor. To save time and construction costs, on-sight engineers created two sets of "step-stair" locks instead of their plan's four individual locks. The second set is located twenty-five yards east and partially buried under Roanoke Avenue and the railroad tracks.
Each lock's gates and wickets could be opened and closed by one person once the water pressure equalized. From the top of the first lock to the bottom of the last, the canal made a change of 38 feet in elevation. It took less than five minutes to flood or empty each lock. |