An Inquisitive
Visitor's
Guide to the
Ohio & Erie Canal and Towpath Trail
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An Inquisitive
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History: The area encompassed by Cascade Locks Park was once a densely packed area of industry. The Cascade Mill Race and Ohio & Erie Canal provided the water power and means of transportation that allowed the area to flourish. Dr. Eliakim Crosby plotted a town in the area which was to be called Cascade. But for some unknown reason, when the town plat was accepted in Ravenna, then the capital of Portage County (Summit County hadn't been formed yet), it was called Akron. Since the adjacent town platted by Simon Perkins was also called Akron, Crosby's Akron became known as North Akron while Perkins' Akron became known as South Akron. A bitter rivalry existed between the town towns until they merged in the mid 1800's.
Lock 14 North (Portage Summit Level) - Cascade Mills Lock
Lock 14 looking south from the North Street bridge
About the Lock: Lock 14 is the
second watered lock in Akron and can be viewed by looking just over the
North Street bridge to the south. There is a lot of history associated
with this lock. William B.
The spillway for Lock 14 was to the east and reentered the canal under the bridge. Its tumble is still in existence east of the lock. The spillway for Lock 13 reentered the canal just above Lock 14 on the western side as the distance between Locks 13 and 14 was the shortest on the northern section of the canal. The towpath approached Lock 14 on the eastern side but switched to the western side on the bridge on the north end of the lock.
Artist Don Getz's recreation of Locks 14 and 13 and the Cascade Mill
Lock 13 North (Portage Summit Level)
Lock 13 looking south
About the Lock: Lock 13 continues the chain of watered staircase locks through Akron's Cascade. To the west, it shared a spillway with Lock 12 and the tumble sat at the end of the lock's southwest wing wall. The towpath crossed this tumble on a bridge as it passed on the western side of the lock. A large mill pond once sat just east of the lock. It was created in the Cascade Mill Race just south of where the water was used to power the large wheel of Schumacher's Cascade Mill. In the canal itself, a turning basin sat at both ends of the lock, the northernmost one bordering the mill itself so that the mill's products could be easily loaded into the canal boats. Had Cascade Street, which comes in from Howard Street to the east, continued through the area instead of dead ending at the mill race, it would have crossed directly over the lock. The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad passes directly over the lock on its way to Akron Northside Station and the railroad's trestle sits just east of the lock. During the construction of the current Towpath Trail, the southwest wing wall was reconstructed of concrete.
Lock 12 North (Portage Summit Level) - Aetna Mills Lock
Looking south into Lock 12
About the Lock: The next in the line of Cascade Locks is Lock 12, one of two "Aetna Mills" Locks. The long spillway that served both Locks 12 and 13 began at the southwest wing wall of the lock with a bridge over the tumble for the crossing of the towpath.
At one time or another, the Elevator Mill, a paint works, and a grocery store were located at this lock.
Lock 11 North (Portage Summit Level) - Aetna Mills Lock - 37 Mile Lock
Looking north into Lock 11 from the canal
About the Lock: Continuing up the staircase of locks, you'll find Lock 11, which also serviced the large Aetna Mills during the canal's heyday. This lock did not get a complete concrete refacing that most of the other locks on the northern section of the canal did in the early 20th century. The original Berea sandstones are still visible here. The spillway tumble for the lock was a bit off to the west of the lock as a decent sized basin existed south of the gates. The spillway for Lock 10 entered this basin southwest of the lock's wing walls. Lock 11's spillway reentered the canal north of the lock and was crossed by the towpath. The towpath itself crossed over the lock from the west side to the east side on a bridge at the north end of the lock. The current Towpath Trail changes sides at Lock 11 as well but in a different location from the original bridge.
High above Lock 11 is the Wheeling & Lake Erie Railroad which is still active. It sits 70 feet above the lock and is 900 feet long.
Lock 10 North (Portage Summit Level)
East wall of Lock 10 looking south toward downtown Akron. The canal enters a tunnel under the Innerbelt in the distance.
About the Lock: Only the eastern wall of Lock 10 still exists. The old Steam Plant sat just to the east of the lock. This is the last of the Cascade Locks still in existence as Locks 9-4 were covered up by urban development in the 1960's. The lock's spillway began at the now nonexistent southwest wing wall of the lock and traveled into a basin north of the lock. The towpath ran along the eastern side of the lock as it does today.
Location: The Steam Plant Trailhead will be located on Beech Street at the site of the former Beech Street Steam Plant which was torn down in the winter of 2004-2005. The Trailhead will have a parking lot off of Beech Street which turns off of the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway (Howard Street).
History: The steam plant was built in the 1930's in place of the Northern Ohio Traction Co. Power House that supplied electricity to downtown at the end of Akron's canal era. Today's Innerbelt was built just south of the steam plant and its presence causes the canal to go underground until it emerges from under the Civic Theatre just north of Lock 3. The future trailhead should be completed by early 2007.
There is no Towpath Trail south of the Steam Plant Trailhead until Lock 3. It is under design and is expected to be completed by the end of 2008. It will run along what would be the west side of the canal along side the Innerbelt before going through a tunnel under Rand Avenue and a across a bridge over the Innerbelt. It will then connect with Ash Street and follow a designated sidewalk to Lock 2. A pedestrian walkway has been designated here and follows Beech, Howard, and Main Streets to Lock 3.
<< Continue North | Continue South >> ^Another view of Cascade Locks Park^
Historic mill photos compliments of the Cascade Locks Park Association. |
Location: The Lock 14 Trailhead
is located on North Street in Akron. It is accessible to travelers of the
CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway (Howard Street) by turning west onto
North Street. The trailhead is directly across North Street from the
Mustill Store Trailhead.
Mitchell erected the first mill to the east of the canal between locks 14
and 13, but it was Ferdinand Schumacher that made it famous. It was here
that he started the company that would become Quaker Oats, the largest
producer of breakfast cereals in the country at that time. His mill became
known as the Cascade Mill. A circular foundation can be seen east of the
lock that may have been the base of the large steam tower of the mill. For
more about Ferdinand Schumacher, read
To
the east of the lock is the building occupied by Ace Rubber and before
the Great Depression, American Tire and Rubber. But before either of
these enterprises, the Aetna Mills were located here. In the early days
of the valley, the Aetna Furnace operated at the site, giving name to
Furnace Street that heads east from Howard Street but no longer exists
west of Howard. After the building burned down, it was rebuilt as a
flour mill and became the Aetna Mills. Supposedly, part of the
foundation for the current building dates to the time of the Aetna
Mills. The mill, like the Cascade Mill farther north, was powered by the
Cascade Mill Race which now runs underground here. Above the west side
of the lock is the Ohio Edison Substation off of, appropriately enough,
Aetna Street..jpg)
