Description: This photograph shows an abandoned canal lock and an overgrown canal bed near Grand Rapids, Ohio. A railroad trestle spans the canal bed. The unidentified lock may be Lock No. 44, now located within the boundaries of Providence Metro Park (across the Maumee River from Grand Rapids). Lock No. 44 was part of the Miami, Wabash and Erie Canal system. The Miami and Erie Canal, which connected Toledo to Cincinnati, joined the Wabash and Erie Canal, which linked Toledo to Evansville, Indiana. The conjoined canals diverged at Junction, Ohio. The Miami and Erie Canal was one of Ohio's most important canals during the mid-nineteenth century. During the late 1810s, Governor Thomas Worthington and Governor Ethan Allen Brown both supported the development of canals. Both men believed that Ohioans needed quick and easy access to the Ohio River and to Lake Erie if they were to profit financially. Farmers and business owners would be able to transport their products much more easily and cheaply with canals rather than turnpikes. Canals would also possibly open up new markets for Ohio goods. In 1822 the Ohio legislature created a new Ohio Canal Commission, which eventually recommended two routes: a western route along the Miami and Maumee Valleys (Miami and Erie Canal) and an eastern route that started at Lake Erie, passing through the Cuyahoga Valley, the Muskingum Valley, the Licking Valley, and then to the Ohio River along the Scioto Valley (Ohio and Erie Canal). In 1825 the Ohio legislature approved both routes, and work began immediately on the Miami and Erie Canal. The 250-mile-long canal was completed in 1845. On February 22, 1832, construction of the Wabash and Erie Canal started in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Once completed, it would connect Toledo, Ohio, and Evansville, Indiana. The Wabash and Erie Canal intersected with the Miami and Erie Canal at the town of Junction, Ohio. From Junction the canals proceeded as one to Defiance, Toledo, and Lake Erie. Most canals remained in operation in Ohio until the late 1800s. By the 1850s canals were losing business to the railroads, which offered several advantages. Railroads delivered passengers and goods more quickly, and they were not limited by a water source as canals were. Because of these advantages, railroads quickly supplanted the canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06114
Subjects: Wabash and Erie Canal (Ind. and Ohio); Miami and Erie Canal (Ohio); Canals--Ohio--History--19th century; Grand Rapids (Ohio); Wood County (Ohio); Transportation--Ohio--History;
Places: Grand Rapids (Ohio); Wood County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the Buckland Lock, part of the Wabash and Erie Canal system. Located near Grand Rapids, Ohio, Buckland was a guard lock from the slackwater at Providence Dam into the Miami and Erie Canal. Boats coming from the Gilead Canal across the Maumee River locked back into the Miami and Erie Canal at this point. During the late 1810s, Governor Thomas Worthington and Governor Ethan Allen Brown both supported the development of canals in Ohio. Both men believed that Ohioans needed quick and easy access to the Ohio River and to Lake Erie if they were to profit financially. Farmers and business owners would be able to transport their products much more easily and cheaply with canals rather than turnpikes. Canals would also possibly open up new markets for Ohio goods. The Wabash and Erie Canal opened in 1845 and made Toledo a growing seaport and center of commerce along Lake Erie. In addition to the Wabash and Erie Canal, Toledo was connected to the city of Cincinnati by way of the Miami and Erie Canal. The Wabash and Erie Canal intersected with the Miami and Erie Canal at the town of Junction, Ohio. From Junction the canals proceeded as one to Defiance, Toledo, and Lake Erie. Most canals remained in operation in Ohio until the late 1800s. By the 1850s, however, canals were losing business to the railroads, which offered several advantages. Railroads delivered passengers and goods more quickly, and they were not limited by a water source as canals were. Because of these advantages, railroads quickly supplanted the canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06115
Subjects: Wabash and Erie Canal (Ind. and Ohio); Miami and Erie Canal (Ohio); Canals--Ohio--History--19th century; Grand Rapids (Ohio); Transportation--Ohio--History;
Places: Grand Rapids (Ohio); Wood County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph showing a bank off of Grand Rapids. The caption beneath the photograph reads: "Bad Bank at Grand Rapids, O." The attached description located on the back of the page reads: "Photograph No. 45.| WEAK BANK, GRAND RAPIDS, OHIO.| The bank is becoming weak on account of water passing over the Grand Rapids Dam. A repair should be made by lining this bank with stone a distance of some 400 feet." This photograph is part of a series taken by the Board of the Ohio Department of Public Works to document the disrepair of the infrastructure of the Ohio and Erie Canal and Miami-Erie Canal systems in 1916, showing the physical condition of each structure. The Ohio Department of Public Works is one of the oldest departments of state government in continuous existence. Among its other duties, this department was charged with maintenance and administration of the Ohio & Erie and Miami-Erie Canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA936AV_B01_045
Subjects: Waterworks; Rivers; Canals; Lakes & ponds; Dams; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Grand Rapids (Ohio); Wood County (Ohio)
 

Description: Canal plat map showing a section of the Miami and Erie Canal through Grand Rapids in Lucas County, between stations 1205 and 1286. Roads, properties, and other landmarks along the route are noted, including the Maumee River. The map was created under the direction of the members of the Canal Commission of the state of Ohio and approved by the Chief Engineer of the Department of Public Works (variously referred to as the Board of Public Works and the Division of Public Works). Construction on the Miami and Erie Canal took place between 1825 and 1845, and the finished route connected Cincinnati and Toledo, as well as the Ohio River with Lake Erie. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: BV23166_028
Subjects: Miami and Erie Canal (Ohio); Transportation; Canals -- Ohio; Rivers--Ohio
Places: Grand Rapids (Ohio); Lucas County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph showing a dam, which is structure used to control the flow of water and/or store water. The caption beneath the photograph reads: "Dam at Grand Rapids." This photograph is part of a series taken by the Board of the Ohio Department of Public Works to document the disrepair of the infrastructure of the Ohio and Erie Canal and Miami-Erie Canal systems in 1916, showing the physical condition of each structure. The Ohio Department of Public Works is one of the oldest departments of state government in continuous existence. Among its other duties, this department was charged with maintenance and administration of the Ohio & Erie and Miami-Erie Canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA936AV_B01_047
Subjects: Waterworks; Rivers; Canals; Lakes & ponds; Dams; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Grand Rapids (Ohio); Wood County (Ohio)
 

Description: This is a photograph showing a wash-out, which is the erosion of soft soil and/or other surfaces due to streams. The caption beneath the photograph reads: "Wash-out at Grand Rapids Lock." The attached description located on the back of the photograph reads: "PHOTOGRAPH No. 48.| GRAND RAPIDS LOCK.| Private property is being washed away and damages will be incurred if the present structure is not repaired. The lock lies within the corporate limits of Grand Rapids and needs a retaining wall built a distance of some 60 feet to prevent wash." This photograph is part of a series taken by the Board of the Ohio Department of Public Works to document the disrepair of the infrastructure of the Ohio and Erie Canal and Miami-Erie Canal systems in 1916, showing the physical condition of each structure. The Ohio Department of Public Works is one of the oldest departments of state government in continuous existence. Among its other duties, this department was charged with maintenance and administration of the Ohio & Erie and Miami-Erie Canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA936AV_B01_048
Subjects: Waterworks; Rivers; Canals; Lakes & ponds; Dams; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Grand Rapids (Ohio); Wood County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photographic postcard is captioned "A Trip to Wapakoneta, O., pub. by M.W. Hamilton." It illustrates five scenes in Wapakoneta: the theatre, the high school, a view down Auglaize Street, the courthouse, and the Auglaize River. A correspondent wrote in German to the Grand Rapids, Michigan, recipient about enjoying a little visit this week in this very little German city, but the card was never stamped or mailed. Wapakoneta later became famous as the home of Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04093
Subjects: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Cities and towns--Ohio
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)
 

Description: People in three boats raft in heavy rapids against a rocky cliff in the Colorado River, ca. 1970-1980. Photographer Joe Munroe, who took the picture, lived in Ohio from 1945 to 1954. Also a filmmaker, Munroe led sixteen rafting trips down the Colorado River while making two of his films about the Grand Canyon. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05883
Subjects: Rafting (Sports)--Colorado River (Colo.-Mexico); Joe Munroe; Photographers--Ohio
Places: Colorado River
 

Description: Canal plat map showing a section of the Miami and Erie Canal through Henry County (just south of Grand Rapids in adjacent Wood County), between stations 1752 and 1869. Roads, properties, and other landmarks along the route are noted, including the Maumee River. The map was created under the direction of the members of the Canal Commission of the state of Ohio and approved by the Chief Engineer of the Department of Public Works (variously referred to as the Board of Public Works and the Division of Public Works). Construction on the Miami and Erie Canal took place between 1825 and 1845, and the finished route connected Cincinnati and Toledo, as well as the Ohio River with Lake Erie. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: BV23165_005
Subjects: Miami and Erie Canal (Ohio); Transportation; Canals -- Ohio; Rivers--Ohio
Places: Henry County (Ohio)