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Culverts and Aqueducts
There were
several other specially engineered structures associated with the canal for which Shelby
County, Ohio was noted. The most important of these was the Turtle Creek Culvert in
Washington Township. Jack Gieck, in his book, "A Photo Album of Ohio's Canal
Era", referred to it as follows: "The magnificent Turtle Creek
Culvert in Shelby County was longer and taller - and certainly more graceful - than many
aqueducts." Located just off of Hardin-Houston near Shenk Road, the
culvert carried the canal over Turtle Creek. The earthen embankment for the culvert was a
half mile long. It carried the canal over stream at a height of 50 feet above the creek
level. Because of its double-barreled construction, it was considered one of the most
important engineering feats of the entire Ohio canal system. |
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| This project was begun in 1837.
Because of disputes over who would build it, the culverts were not completed until 1843.
Major repairs were made in 1897. The awe-inspiring structure (shown above) was
later placed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was torn down in the early
1980s due to its deteriorating condition and the lack of funds to restore it. Three
aqueducts were constructed in the county. These were usually wooden structures that
carried the canal over another body of water. Two were in the Lockington area. The third
aqueduct took the canal over Loramie Creek at Ft. Loramie (shown below). Two other
large culverts over Painter and Mill Creeks are found in Shelby County. These are also
large structures with openings of approximately 25 feet in width. There are also two small
culverts just north of the Lockington area. |
This aqueduct carried the canal over the Loramie
Creek. The towpath for the horses or mules is shown above, and the old bridge
carrying traffic over the creek. Photo courtesy of Rita Hoying.
'Canal' segment written in
December, 1998 by Rich Wallace
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