Narrows Lock 35 - Rideau Canal

Canada / Ontario / Perth /
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www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/on/rideau/natcul/natcul2h_E.asp

The question you have to ask here is why is there a lock in the middle of a lake? It has to do with bedrock and malaria. When trying to excavate the canal cut through The Isthmus, the watershed divide at Newboro, hard bedrock was encountered. Seasonal malaria also impeded the work. To speed up construction and reduce the amount of excavation at Newboro, Lt. Colonel By came up with a plan to build a dam and lock here, at a natural narrowing of the lake. This raised the level of the portion of Rideau Lake on the west side of the Narrows, creating Upper Rideau Lake. One of the four blockhouses built on the Rideau is located here, to protect this important lock.

www.rideau-info.com/
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rideau_Canal
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Coordinates:   44°42'10"N   76°17'43"W
This article was last modified 4 years ago