Between 1830 and 1832, construction of the Ohio and Erie Canal in this area crossed the farm of stone contractor George Herodth in Rush Township, Ohio, where he built the Elbow Lock, Camp Creek Culvert, and other works, while his wife Elizabeth often cooked for 60 or more workers digging the canal. George promised Elizabeth that when his contract ended he would build her a Baptist church on their property, and until then members met in homes; some canal workers attended the services and helped him burn bricks for the church called Bethany. Slaves traveled through this area, and in 1861 workers left their jobs to join the war, causing Ohio to privatize the canal until 1877. In 1881 the GAR formed and held meetings in the church for living veterans. In 1898 Rev. AK Murphy raised money for a new church at its present location, dedicated in May 1900 at a cost of $3,000, and stained glass windows were installed with sponsors' names including some canal workers and GAR members. While passengers waited for boats to be weighed and pass through the locks, they viewed a grist mill, sawmills, a boat yard, the Peter Brown Flour Mill, the Brush Creek Aqueduct, and the falls; some stopped at the English General Store, visited the gunpowder mill until it exploded, the nearby station housing canal animals, fished in the Scioto River, went to church, or rested before boarding again and continuing to the next lock.