North Carolina, Carteret County, Morehead City
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Headquarters and annual meeting-place, 1888-1900; razed in 1934. The building stood here.
(Education) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
Headquarters and annual meeting-place, 1888-1900; razed in 1934. The building stood here.
(Education) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
The Red River Trail was the nineteenth-century answer to communication over the frontier between the early settlements on the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers and Lord Selkirk's settlements (Winnipeg) in Canada. Trails, such as this, were not marked. They weren't even trails. Actually, they were a direction – running across what is now Minnesota from the present site of
Minneapolis and St. Paul to Pembina. The Red River Trail followed three main lines, one of which ran through what is now Kandiyohi County in a northwesterly direction. Since the trail was not defined, it became a broad track (sometimes miles wide) over which the teamsters guided their oxcarts. It was only when the trail passed near a lake that all the cart tracks converged into a comparatively narrow band. The portion of the highway along the southwest shore of Diamond Lake has been built over one of these bands.
“The site of the locks at Lockport, from the time of the original canal to the present had never changed. The early engineers found the logical location for locks in this vicinity and the same place has been used ever since. The romance of ancient geological happenings have attached to this site. Where the locks now stand the rushing waters from the Great Lakes once poured, falling over a precipice and excavating the gorge through which the canal passes on its coursed to the east…”
Life aboard the canal barges involved hard work. All members of the family had important roles. The man would be in charge of the animals and manage the entire operation. The wife (and mother) had many chores in addition to caring for the household. Children pitched in and often acted as the “hoggee” driving the mules down the path.
The canal ride from Rochester to Lockport was some what of a lark. The Long Level, as it was known, was a 63 mile trip uninterrupted by locks. The approach to Lockport, after all, marked the next to last stop in a long, weary trip across the state. The only challenge that stood between the boat and the western terminus of the canal in Buffalo was the flight of locks in Lockport.
Different panels appear on opposite sides of the marker
The booming period, from 1867 to 1889, was used to make steel rails and fortunes...Across this rampant industrial expansion, the Great Flood of 1889 rolled like a juggernaught.
This beautiful carousel was built by the talented craftsmen of the Philadelphia Toboggan Co., who carved the solid wood horses and the intricate crown.
Pleasure driving along the Lincoln Highway has long been a popular pastime. Motorists sought and continue to seek scenic beauty and amusements, such as Idlewild Park.
In 1938 The Rollo Coaster opens to a crowd of 18,000. Standing 27' tall and 900' long, the unique out-and-back ride was constructed on a hillside. The wood for the ride was cut on park property, utilizing a sawmill built next to the construction site.
In 1903, the people of New York voted to build the Barge Canal System. The new canal, unlike the old, utilized canalized natural water courses as well as artificial channels. The new concrete locks (57 in all) were electrically operated and could hold a vessel of 2,000 tons as opposed to 250 tons in the old. At Lockport, the old double flight of five locks were replaced by two giant locks constructed in tandem. Locks 34 and 35.
A packet boat was upwards of 80 feet long, 9 feet wide at is extreme breadth, with 50 feet of cabin space in the center for passengers. This left 10 feet of space in the prow and 20 feet for the steerage deck. The long but narrow cabin was sufficiently lofty to admit walking with ease, and the roof of it formed the upper deck of the boat. The cabin was lined with neatly cushioned seats, with a succession of Venetian blinded to open or shut at pleasure. Passengers took their meals at the long table that ran through the center of the cabin.
The Raceway Tunnel was invented by Birdsell Holly. Blasting for the tunnel began in 1858. Construction of the 2,430 foot tunnel took 18 months. The tunnel contains old gates and ruins of buildings from the beginning of the Industrial Age. The cave features stalactites, flowstone and other geological formations.
To overcome the great elevation of the Niagara Escarpment, the original canal builders constructed a unique flight of 5 double locks, to lower easterly and raise westerly bound boats some sixty feet.
From the original Erie Canal to the Barge Canal System, crossing the Niagara Escarpment posed immense challenges to canal engineers.
The first bridge across the canal in Lockport was located a the extreme eastern end of the Big Bridge. It was a narrow log bridge, only wide enough for one way traffic, with a log on either side for guard rails. Called the “Main Street Bridge”, it was Lockport’s only bridge spanning the Canal which was forty feet wide at the time.
The City of Lockport wishes to express its appreciation to City Historian William H. Riley (1922-1990) for his dedication, assistance, patience and love for the City of Lockport, New York.
