Groundbreaking of the Miami Canal took place at Middletown on July 21, 1825. Construction began on July 25, 1825. The Miami Canal ran from Cincinnati to Dayton. The section from Middletown to Lockington was completed in October, 1827. The remainder of the route was opened to Dayton in July, 1828. On July 4, 1828, the Miami Canal was officially opened and dedicated. Construction of the 12 mile level section south of Howell Basin was slow and was not finished until 1829. The final section was finished in 1833. However, the final section was never used much because of high water levels that silted the lower locks. The cargo was usually unloaded at Howell Basin and transport by wagon to the docks on the Ohio River. The Miami Canal totaled 66 miles.

Construction of the Miami Extension began in 1833, after much controversy and debate. However, the legislature had all but promised to build this extension of the Miami Canal. Permission was first given for a 32 mile extension just north of Piqua. In 1836, permission was granted to finish the extension and junction with Indiana's Wabash & Erie Canal.

Groundbreaking on the Wabash & Erie took place at Fort Wayne, Indiana on February 22, 1832. The Wabash & Erie Canal of Indiana was 462 1/2 miles (87 1/2 miles in Ohio) and was the longest canal built in the United States. Ohio was reluctant to build or complete their portion of the canal, and managed to delay the canal construction as long as possible.

Near Toledo there was 3 different branches built for the northern terminus of the canal. The Maumee Side Cut, a 1-1/2 mile canal with 6 locks, which terminated at the Maumee River in Perrysburg. The Toledo Side Cut, a .4 mile canal with 2 locks, terminated at Swan Creek. The Manhattan Extension was the northern most terminal with 2 locks. Difficulties led to the closing of the Maumee Side Cut in 1864, and the Manhattan Extension in 1871, leaving the Toledo Side Cut as the terminus.

In 1849, the Miami Canal, the Miami Extension, and the Wabash & Erie Canal were combined and renamed the Miami & Erie Canal. The canal now totaled 249 miles, with 19 aqueducts, 3 guard locks, and 103 lift locks. The entire canal system cost $6.7 million. It took 64 hours to make the full 249 mile trip.

In later years, the Miami & Erie Canal was slightly more productive than the Ohio & Erie Canal because the larger dimensions allowed steam boats to travel the canal. The peak year of the Miami & Erie Canal was in 1851. The Miami & Erie Canal was leased to 6 business men between 1861 and 1878. They greatly neglected the canal and it was returned to the state in great disrepair. Between 1904 and 1909, the state put forth an effort to rebuild the Canal, replacing the wooden canal locks with concrete. However, they lost interest in 1910. The emerging railroads led to the decline of the Miami & Erie Canal. The last boat to haul cargo for pay was the De Camp Statler, which made its final stop at Fort Loramie in 1912. The Great Flood of 1913 destroyed much of the canal. The Miami & Erie Canal was officially abandoned in 1929.

This page will grow in time. I plan to locate and photograph all of the remaining canal locks.

Toledo - Loraime Summit
# 50
# 49
# 48
# 47
# 46
# 45
# 44
# 43
# 42
# 41
# 40
# 39
# 38
# 37
# 36
# 35
# 34
# 33
# 32
# 31
# 30
# 29
# 28
# 27
# 26
# 25
# 24
# 23 (gone)
# 22 (gone)
# 21 (gone)
# 20 (gone)
# 19 (gone)
# 18 (gone)
# 17
# 16
# 15
# 14
# 13
# 12 (gone)
# 11 (gone)
# 10 (gone)
# 9 (gone)
# 8
# 7 (gone)
# 6 (gone)
# 5 (gone)
# 4 (gone)
# 3 (gone)
# 2 (gone)
# 1

Loraime Summit - Cincinnati
# 1
# 2
# 3
# 4
# 5
# 6
# 7
# 8
# 9
# 10
# 11
# 12
# 13
# 14
# 15
# 16
# 17
# 18
# 19
# 20
# 21
# 22
# 23
# 24
# 25
# 26
# 27
# 28
# 29
# 30
# 31
# 32
# 33
# 34
# 35
# 36
# 37
# 38
# 39
# 40
# 41
# 42
# 43 (gone)
# 44 (gone)
# 45 (gone)
# 46 (gone)
# 47 (gone)
# 48 (gone)
# 49 (gone)
# 50 (gone)
# 51 (gone)
# 52 (gone)
# 53 (gone)