Lock 37 became a center of local canal commerce, with businesses serving canal boat crews, residents, and farmers. The Vanouceks operated a tavern and general store there, while the Alexander family ran a gristmill. A spillway carried excess water around the lock, and the mill used that waterpower to grind grain into flour and livestock feed. In 1863, a freight boat left the lock with the Alexander / Wilson Mill on the left and the Vanoucek tavern, store, house, and barn on the right.