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Lock 16 South (Portage Summit Level) - 36 Mile Lock
Mile Marker 36, resting bench, wayside, and Lock 16 on the Towpath Trail looking south
About the Lock: Lock 16 is the last unwatered lock heading south on the northern leg of the Ohio & Erie Canal. The Towpath Trail exists in roughly its original location. The lock sits at Mile Marker 36, meaning that it is approximately 36 miles south of Lake Erie on the trail. There was no spillway for this lock. A waste weir was located just south of the lock that let the extra water exit directly into the Little Cuyahoga River. The foundation of a building that was thought to be a locktender's house or toll collector's house can be seen on the west side of the lock if you hike off the trail a bit. It may also be the remains of a grocery and provisions store that once existed at this lock. North Maple Street once ran up to this lock but now ends up the hill from here.
Little Cuyahoga Dam, Feeder, and Waste Weir
Waste weir on the east side of the Towpath Trail south of Lock 16
About the Structures: This was the second such dam and feeder on the Little Cuyahoga River, the first being located farther north near Lock 21. About as much of this one exists as the first one - nothing. The dam was south of Lock 16 and the impounded water flowed into a feeder channel that entered the canal just north of Lock 16. Because of the feeder and the proximity of the river to the canal bed here, there was no spillway for Lock 16. Instead, the backed up water created by the closing of Lock 16's gates flowed through the waste weir pictured above directly into the river behind the dam where it could either flow back into the feeder channel or on down the river. The towpath crossed on a bridge directly over the weir but the current Towpath Trail passes in what was the canal bed during the canal era.
The Mustill Store Visitor Center
Location: The Mustill Store is the southernmost visitor center on the completed Towpath Trail from Cleveland to Akron, just south of Mile Marker 36. It is accessible to motorists traveling the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway (Howard Street) by turning west on North Street.
History: Built in the mid 1800's by Joseph Mustill across from Lock 15 on the Ohio & Erie Canal, the store was a popular stop for canal boat crews as the boats began their steep ascent through the Cascade Locks. It is one of the oldest buildings in Akron and underwent a major restoration in the late 1900's, opening as a visitor center in 2000. It is called the "Jewel of the Canal" and is open throughout the spring, summer and early fall. It is also home to the Cascade Locks Park Association whose goal is the development of an urban park highlighting Locks 16 to10, the Cascade Mill Race, and a number of historical features relevant to Akron's history.
Lock 15 North (Portage Summit Level)
Northern end of Lock 15 looking south from the Little Cuyahoga River
About the Lock: Lock 15, which
sits across the Towpath Trail from the Mustill Store, is the first watered
lock in Akron. It is also the first of the densely packed "staircase"
locks called the Cascade Locks that Akron owes its early industrial growth
to. The water that comes out of the lock joins with the Little
<< Continue North | Continue South >>
The Silliman Survey picture of the canal is courtesy of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water. I colored and labeled it for the explanation above. The historic picture of the Mustill Store compliments of the Cascade Locks Park Association. |
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Saturdays and Sundays from 12 - 6 p.m. Inside are interpretive displays
about the Mustill family, archeological findings, and the canal itself.
Perhaps the most impressive is the wall sized mural in the Meat Market
section of the store depicting a typical scene along the Cascade Locks
in the Spring of 1877. It was painted by artist
Cuyahoga
River. This was not always the case. The Flood of 1913 washed out the
narrow strip of land that separated the river from the canal when the
canal was still functional. This put an end to the use of the canal north
of Lock 15. The Towpath Trail now passes on the west side of the canal,
but originally existed on the east side. A spillway ran along the west
side of the canal and passed under the porch of the Mustill Store. Drain
culverts can still be seen where this wasteway ran, as well as part of one
of possibly two tumbles for the spillway. Although it doesn't appear on
the Plat Map of the canal from 1912, the mural in the Mustill Store shows
another waterway coming from the south and entering the spillway at the
southern end of the tumble. I do not know the origin of this second
waterway if it truly even existed. A small race began on the east side of
the canal south of Lock 15 and may have been used by the Swinehart Rubber
Company (now Abtec). The much longer Cascade Mill Race entered the Little
Cuyahoga River just east of this smaller race. The Cascade Race tunnel
still exists under North Street. A turning basin sat between Lock 15 and
North Street.
