On the Erie Canal, engineers solved two major lock problems. Because the canal had a current, they devised a way to divert water through the locks when the gates were closed so the locks would not flood. Square openings at the head of the locks channeled water to a culvert running between the lock chambers, and movable plates at the openings regulated the flow into the culvert, controlling the water level above the locks. Another challenge was hauling 250-ton grain barges into the lock chambers without wedging them. In 1880, an experiment at Port Byron Lock No. 52 installed a turbine at the head of the lock. Rods and gears connected the turbine to spools at the upper inside of each lock chamber, with a rope and steel hook attached to each spool. When a barge was hooked, water flowing past the turbine turned the spools and pulled the barges into the lock chambers with minimum effort. Similar turbines were soon installed at every lock on the Erie Canal.
