Baldwinsville
Lock 24
The history buff in me always comes out when I see an
historical project from the Erie Canal days still functioning today as part of
the modern Erie Canal.
While traveling in the Syracuse-Fulton and Oswego area
several weekends ago we secured motel rooms in Baldwinsville and after checking
in asked the location of a nice restaurant.
The motel desk clerk quickly without hesitation gave us
directions to the Lock 24 Restaurant at 33 Water Street.
Upon arriving at this location we immediately recognized
that we were at a location with significant historical background.
Directly opposite the Lock 24 Restaurant was the Erie Canal
(now referred to the Barge Canal) Baldwinsville Lock No. 24, a structure we
amazingly have never seen before and after 100 years the lock is still lifting
and lowering boats.
Although the canal is now only open from May 1 through
November 15, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, in the summer, our memory
took me back to the days we read about and were taught the workings of the Erie
Canal.
The 100th anniversary of Barge Canal Lock 24 was celebrated
last summer and although traffic on the canal is very different from the Erie
days this waterway sees only a few commercial boats but pleasure boating is
brisk. The canal system stretches 525 miles from the Hudson River to Lake
Erie.
It takes a million gallons of water to "lock" a boat and the
lock is all-electric, powered by 240 volts of direct current and folks in the
restaurant noted that the "gates rumble mightily when they open."
This artificial waterway and the locks that control it are
an historical event with Lock 24 being one of the busiest along the canal system
where nearly 20,000 boats lock-through in a season.
Don't have a boat but would like to do some cruising
on the canal. Go to these websites, lockportlocks.com, canalcruises.com, midlakesnav.com
Oh yes, before we forget, if in the area treat
your pallets to outstanding food at the Lock 24 Restaurant.
Additional photos are posted on our Web page,
http://bght.blogspot.com
Identification of photo
The historic Erie (Barge) Canal Lock No. 24 at Baldwinsville
near Syracuse.
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