Black Rock Lock

The first lock at Black Rock was constructed in 1824 by New York State as part of harbor improvements for Black Rock Harbor in conjunction with the Erie Canal, about 750 feet south of the present lock, and it was replaced in 1851 by a 200-foot by 36-foot lock near the same location. In 1903, the New York State Barge Canal project sought to enlarge and improve the Erie Canal, and during the same period the U.S. Government authorized construction of a new ship lock, bridge, and additional wing-walls under the River and Harbor Act of March 3, 1905. By late 1907, a contract had been drawn up for a cofferdam and lock at the foot of Bridge Street, and at the time Black Rock Lock was one of the largest freshwater locks in the world. Construction began in 1908 and included removal of the old New York State ship lock, construction of the Ferry Street Bridge, and excavation of the Black Rock Channel. Building the lock required cofferdams to keep out water so work could be done in the dry, and depended on engineers, draftsmen, surveyors, carpenters, ironworkers, crane operators, welders, and many laborers moving rock and dirt and placing concrete with simple chutes and wheelbarrows; many were immigrants who worked long hours to feed their families, and the work was dangerous because tools or metal could be deadly and a fall into the channel could be fatal for a person who could not swim. The lock opened to vessel traffic on August 17, 1914, and the steamer KENSINGTON was the first vessel to pass through it. Its machinery, pumping plant, and capstans were driven by hydroelectric power from Niagara Falls, and Lackawanna steel sheet piling made by Lackawanna Steel Co. was used in the cofferdam. Contractors contributing to the lock and improvements to Black Rock Harbor, including Tonawanda Harbor, were the Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Co., Buffalo Dredging Co., MacArthur Bros., Co., and Oiler Engineering Co. Since opening, commercial vessels have carried commodities essential to business and industry in Western New York. Today the lock can accommodate vessels 625 feet long and 68 feet wide with drafts up to 21 feet deep; it has one chamber, and each gate weighs between 65 and 70 tons, more than 700 tons for all gates. Operation and maintenance of the lock and the Black Rock Lock and Channel, including Tonawanda Harbor, is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In 1960, the lock carried more than a million tons of metals and ore and more than a million tons of coal and coke, helping fuel industries along the river and supply raw materials. By 1980, iron ore traffic had grown to 2.8 million tons while coal had fallen to 200,000 tons, and food products in the 1980s grew to 1.4 million tons. By 1990, total tonnage had fallen to about 100,000 tons, and recreational navigation and tourism had become the main industry. The lock also supported the economic strength of nearby communities including Black Rock, Riverside, Grant-Amherst, and West Hertel by helping sustain their industrial base and the families who lived there.

Buffalo, New York · United States