The Soo Locks (sometimes spelled Sault Locks but pronounced "soo") are a set of parallel locks, operated and maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, that enable ships to travel between Lake Superior and the lower Great Lakes. They are located on the St. Marys River between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, between the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan and the Canadian province of Ontario. They bypass the rapids of the river, where the water falls 21 ft (6.4 m). The locks pass an average of 10,000 ships per year,[4] despite being closed during the winter from January through March, when ice shuts down shipping on the Great Lakes. The winter closure period is used to inspect and maintain the locks.
The locks share a name (usually shortened and anglicized as Soo) with the two cities named Sault Ste. Marie, in Ontario and in Michigan, located on either side of the St. Marys River. The Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge between the United States and Canada permits vehicular traffic to pass over the locks. A railroad bridge crosses the St. Marys River just upstream of the highway bridge.
The first locks were opened in 1855. Along with the Erie Canal, constructed in 1824 in central New York State, they were among the great infrastructure engineering projects of the antebellum United States. The Soo Locks were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966.[5]
During World War II, the Soo Locks and the St. Marys River waterway were intensely guarded by U.S. and Canadian forces coordinated by the U.S. Army's Central Defense Command, as they were considered integral to continued shipping traffic on the Lakes. A one-way German air attack on the locks by forces based in Norway was thought to be possible.[6]
The U.S. locks form part of a 1.6 mi (2.6 km) canal formally named the St. Marys Falls Canal. The entire canal, including the locks, is owned and maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, which provides free passage. The first iteration of the U.S. Soo Locks was completed in May 1855; it was operated by the state of Michigan until transferred to the U.S. Army in 1881.
Locksedit
The configuration consists of two parallel lock chambers.Starting at the Michigan shoreline and moving north toward Ontario, these are:
The MacArthur Lock, built in 1943. It is 800 ft (240 m) long, 80 ft (24 m) wide, and 29.5 ft (9.0 m) deep.[7] This is large enough to handle ocean-going vessels ("salties") that must also pass through the smaller locks in the Welland Canal. The first vessel through was the SS Carl D. Bradley.
The Poe Lock, built in 1896. The first vessel to pass through was the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers tug USS Hancock.[8] The original Poe Lock was engineered by Orlando Poe and, at 800 ft (240 m) long and 100 ft (30 m) wide, was the largest in the world when completed in 1896.[9] The lock was re-built in 1968 to accommodate larger ships, after the Saint Lawrence Seaway opened and made passage of such ships possible to the Great Lakes. It is now 1,200 ft (370 m) long, 110 ft (34 m) wide, and 32 ft (9.8 m) deep.[7] It can take ships carrying 72,000 short tons (65,000 t) of cargo. The Poe is the only lock that can handle the large lake freighters used on the Upper Lakes. The first passage after the rebuild was by the Phillip R. Clarke in 1969.[9]
Former locksedit
The State Lock, built between 1853 and 1855. The State of Michigan was given land by the federal government to construct a lock after copper and iron ore was discovered on Lake Superior. The lock consisted of two chambers back-to-back to bridge the difference in water level.[10] This lock was 350 ft (110 m) long, 60 ft (18 m) wide, and 12 ft (3.7 m) deep.[10] The State Lock was replaced by the original Poe Lock.
The Weitzel Lock, was built between 1873 and 1881 directly south of the State Lock, and was the first lock to be operated by the federal goverment. At 515 ft (157 m) long, 80 ft (24 m) wide, and 17 ft (5.2 m) deep, it was the longest lock in the world upon its completion. It was decommissioned in 1919, and was eventually replaced by the MacArthur Lock in 1943.[10][11][12]
The Davis Lock, built in 1914. At the time of its completion, the Davis Lock was the longest lock in the world at 1,350 ft (410 m) long, and was also 80 ft (24 m) wide and 23 ft (7.0 m) deep.[10] It was officially decommissioned in 2010.[13]
The Sabin Lock, built in 1919.[10] It was constructed as a twin lock to the Davis Lock, and named after Louis Sabin, who served as the Detroit District Engineer. It was officially decommissioned in 2010 at the same time as the Davis Lock.[13]
New lockedit
A new lock is under construction and is slated to be completed by 2030.[14] Groundbreaking for the new lock project was held on June 30, 2009.[15] The lock will be equal in size to the Poe Lock and will provide much needed additional capacity for the large lake freighters.[16] The new lock replaces two locks (Davis Lock and Sabin Lock), which were obsolete and used infrequently. In May 2020, construction on Phase One of the replacement of the Sabin Lock was started.
North of the new lock is an additional channel with a small hydroelectric plant, which provides electricity for the lock complex.
MacArthur Lock, facing north
Engineers Dayedit
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, operates the Soo Locks Visitors Center and viewing deck for the public.[17] On the last Friday of every June, the public is allowed to go behind the security fence and cross the lock gates of the U.S. Soo Locks for the annual Engineers Day Open House.[18][19] During this event, visitors are able to get close enough to touch ships passing through the two regularly operating locks. Other than on that day, because the locks are United States Federal property under command of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, unauthorized personnel and civilians are restricted from the locks under threat of fines or imprisonment for trespassing.
The first lock to be built in the St. Marys River was on the Canadian side in 1798 by the Northwest Fur Company to facilitate the fur trade.[10] It was destroyed by the Americans in 1814 during the War of 1812 to disrupt British trade.[10] Currently, a single small lock is operated on the Canadian side of the Soo. Opened in 1895, it was rebuilt in 1987, and is 77 m (253 ft) long, 15.4 m (51 ft) wide and 13.5 m (44 ft) deep.[20] The Canadian lock is used for recreational and tour boats; major shipping traffic uses the U.S. locks.
^State Historic Preservation Office (2009). . Historic Sites Online. Michigan State Housing Development Authority. Archived from the original on May 11, 2012. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
^. National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved June 27, 2008.
^"NHL nomination for St. Marys Falls Canal". National Park Service. from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
^Conn, Stetson; Engelman, Rose C.; Fairchild, Byron (2000) [1964]. Guarding the United States and its Outposts. United States Army in World War II. Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, United States Army. pp. 102–105. from the original on December 25, 2007. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
^ abDavid Helwig (March 30, 2002). "$227 million lock replacement could start this year". SooToday.com. from the original on September 20, 2002. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
^Arbic, Bernard; Steinhaus, Nancy (2005). Upbound Downbound: The Story of the Soo Locks. Allegan Forest, MI: Priscilla Press. pp. 35–37.
^ ab"Seeing The Light: Orlando Metcalfe Poe". Terrypepper.com. May 30, 2000. from the original on October 14, 2009. Retrieved April 10, 2012.
^ abcdefg"Unlocking the Industrial Midwest: A Pictorial History of Locks at the Soo" (PDF). United States Army Corp of Engineers Detroit District website. USACE. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
^Saint Marys Falls Ship Canal (Soo Locks Historic District, Soo Canals), Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, 2020.
^Lange, Alex, "The Mighty Soo: Construction of the Locks at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan" January 28, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, The Unwritten Record. National Archives, January 5, 2017.
^ abHenry, Tom (November 5, 2021). "The Soo Locks: The 'linchpin' of Great Lakes shipping is entering a new era". The Blade. Block Communications. Yahoo News. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
^"New Lock Info Sheet" (PDF). May 2020. (PDF) from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
^. Detroit Free Press. June 30, 2009. Archived from the original on July 7, 2009. Retrieved July 13, 2009.
^David Helwig (March 30, 2002). "$227 million lock replacement could start this year". SooToday.com. from the original on September 20, 2002. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
^"Chapter 4: The Watery Boundary". United Divide: A Linear Portrait of the USA/Canada Border. The Center for Land Use Interpretation. Winter 2015. from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
^Detroit District. . United States Army Corps of Engineers. Archived from the original on January 31, 2011. Retrieved March 5, 2011.
^"Soo Locks Engineer's Day". June 24, 2010. from the original on January 6, 2011. Retrieved March 5, 2011.
^Parks Canada. . Parks Canada. Archived from the original on July 18, 2006.
Soo Locks homepage U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Soo Locks page
view of the American locks NOTE: This Connection is Untrusted
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YouTube video HD video of a ship passing through the MacArthur Lock
January 01, 1970
locks, sometimes, spelled, sault, locks, pronounced, parallel, locks, operated, maintained, united, states, army, corps, engineers, detroit, district, that, enable, ships, travel, between, lake, superior, lower, great, lakes, they, located, marys, river, betwe. The Soo Locks sometimes spelled Sault Locks but pronounced soo are a set of parallel locks operated and maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District that enable ships to travel between Lake Superior and the lower Great Lakes They are located on the St Marys River between Lake Superior and Lake Huron between the Upper Peninsula of the U S state of Michigan and the Canadian province of Ontario They bypass the rapids of the river where the water falls 21 ft 6 4 m The locks pass an average of 10 000 ships per year 4 despite being closed during the winter from January through March when ice shuts down shipping on the Great Lakes The winter closure period is used to inspect and maintain the locks St Marys Falls CanalU S National Register of Historic PlacesU S National Historic LandmarkMichigan State Historic SiteAerial view of the Soo Locks View is looking east with Canada on the left and the United States on the rightShow map of MichiganShow map of the United StatesLocationSault Ste Marie MichiganCoordinates46 30 12 N 84 21 00 W 46 50333 N 84 35000 W 46 50333 84 35000Built1855 169 years ago 1855 ArchitectCorps of EngineersNRHP reference No 66000394 1 Significant datesAdded to NRHPNovember 13 1966Designated NHLNovember 13 1966 3 Designated MSHSFebruary 12 1959 2 The locks share a name usually shortened and anglicized as Soo with the two cities named Sault Ste Marie in Ontario and in Michigan located on either side of the St Marys River The Sault Ste Marie International Bridge between the United States and Canada permits vehicular traffic to pass over the locks A railroad bridge crosses the St Marys River just upstream of the highway bridge The first locks were opened in 1855 Along with the Erie Canal constructed in 1824 in central New York State they were among the great infrastructure engineering projects of the antebellum United States The Soo Locks were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966 5 During World War II the Soo Locks and the St Marys River waterway were intensely guarded by U S and Canadian forces coordinated by the U S Army s Central Defense Command as they were considered integral to continued shipping traffic on the Lakes A one way German air attack on the locks by forces based in Norway was thought to be possible 6 Contents 1 United States locks 1 1 Locks 1 2 Former locks 1 3 New lock 1 4 Engineers Day 2 Canadian lock 3 Gallery 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksUnited States locks editThe U S locks form part of a 1 6 mi 2 6 km canal formally named the St Marys Falls Canal The entire canal including the locks is owned and maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers which provides free passage The first iteration of the U S Soo Locks was completed in May 1855 it was operated by the state of Michigan until transferred to the U S Army in 1881 Locks edit The configuration consists of two parallel lock chambers Starting at the Michigan shoreline and moving north toward Ontario these are The MacArthur Lock built in 1943 It is 800 ft 240 m long 80 ft 24 m wide and 29 5 ft 9 0 m deep 7 This is large enough to handle ocean going vessels salties that must also pass through the smaller locks in the Welland Canal The first vessel through was the SS Carl D Bradley The Poe Lock built in 1896 The first vessel to pass through was the U S Army Corps of Engineers tug USS Hancock 8 The original Poe Lock was engineered by Orlando Poe and at 800 ft 240 m long and 100 ft 30 m wide was the largest in the world when completed in 1896 9 The lock was re built in 1968 to accommodate larger ships after the Saint Lawrence Seaway opened and made passage of such ships possible to the Great Lakes It is now 1 200 ft 370 m long 110 ft 34 m wide and 32 ft 9 8 m deep 7 It can take ships carrying 72 000 short tons 65 000 t of cargo The Poe is the only lock that can handle the large lake freighters used on the Upper Lakes The first passage after the rebuild was by the Phillip R Clarke in 1969 9 Former locks edit The State Lock built between 1853 and 1855 The State of Michigan was given land by the federal government to construct a lock after copper and iron ore was discovered on Lake Superior The lock consisted of two chambers back to back to bridge the difference in water level 10 This lock was 350 ft 110 m long 60 ft 18 m wide and 12 ft 3 7 m deep 10 The State Lock was replaced by the original Poe Lock The Weitzel Lock was built between 1873 and 1881 directly south of the State Lock and was the first lock to be operated by the federal goverment At 515 ft 157 m long 80 ft 24 m wide and 17 ft 5 2 m deep it was the longest lock in the world upon its completion It was decommissioned in 1919 and was eventually replaced by the MacArthur Lock in 1943 10 11 12 The Davis Lock built in 1914 At the time of its completion the Davis Lock was the longest lock in the world at 1 350 ft 410 m long and was also 80 ft 24 m wide and 23 ft 7 0 m deep 10 It was officially decommissioned in 2010 13 The Sabin Lock built in 1919 10 It was constructed as a twin lock to the Davis Lock and named after Louis Sabin who served as the Detroit District Engineer It was officially decommissioned in 2010 at the same time as the Davis Lock 13 New lock edit A new lock is under construction and is slated to be completed by 2030 14 Groundbreaking for the new lock project was held on June 30 2009 15 The lock will be equal in size to the Poe Lock and will provide much needed additional capacity for the large lake freighters 16 The new lock replaces two locks Davis Lock and Sabin Lock which were obsolete and used infrequently In May 2020 construction on Phase One of the replacement of the Sabin Lock was started North of the new lock is an additional channel with a small hydroelectric plant which provides electricity for the lock complex nbsp MacArthur Lock facing north Engineers Day edit The U S Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District operates the Soo Locks Visitors Center and viewing deck for the public 17 On the last Friday of every June the public is allowed to go behind the security fence and cross the lock gates of the U S Soo Locks for the annual Engineers Day Open House 18 19 During this event visitors are able to get close enough to touch ships passing through the two regularly operating locks Other than on that day because the locks are United States Federal property under command of the U S Army Corps of Engineers unauthorized personnel and civilians are restricted from the locks under threat of fines or imprisonment for trespassing Canadian lock editMain article Sault Ste Marie Canal The first lock to be built in the St Marys River was on the Canadian side in 1798 by the Northwest Fur Company to facilitate the fur trade 10 It was destroyed by the Americans in 1814 during the War of 1812 to disrupt British trade 10 Currently a single small lock is operated on the Canadian side of the Soo Opened in 1895 it was rebuilt in 1987 and is 77 m 253 ft long 15 4 m 51 ft wide and 13 5 m 44 ft deep 20 The Canadian lock is used for recreational and tour boats major shipping traffic uses the U S locks Gallery edit nbsp The first Soo Locks in the 19th century nbsp Anchor Line steamer in the Soo Locks ca 1900s nbsp A whaleback traverses the Poe Lock ca 1910 nbsp Canadian Lock at Sault Ste Marie Ontario nbsp The last ship of the 2013 season passes through the Poe Lock nbsp USCGC Mackinaw passes through Soo LocksReferences edit33 CFR 207 440 33 CFR 207 441 National Register Information System National Register of Historic Places National Park Service January 23 2007 State Historic Preservation Office 2009 Saint Mary s Falls Canal Historic Sites Online Michigan State Housing Development Authority Archived from the original on May 11 2012 Retrieved June 26 2010 St Marys Falls Canal National Historic Landmark summary listing National Park Service Archived from the original on October 6 2012 Retrieved June 27 2008 Detroit District Facts United States Army Corps of Engineers Archived from the original on January 10 2011 Retrieved October 22 2008 NHL nomination for St Marys Falls Canal National Park Service Archived from the original on August 28 2022 Retrieved April 3 2017 Conn Stetson Engelman Rose C Fairchild Byron 2000 1964 Guarding the United States and its Outposts United States Army in World War II Washington D C Center of Military History United States Army pp 102 105 Archived from the original on December 25 2007 Retrieved June 14 2018 a b David Helwig March 30 2002 227 million lock replacement could start this year SooToday com Archived from the original on September 20 2002 Retrieved July 12 2012 Arbic Bernard Steinhaus Nancy 2005 Upbound Downbound The Story of the Soo Locks Allegan Forest MI Priscilla Press pp 35 37 a b Seeing The Light Orlando Metcalfe Poe Terrypepper com May 30 2000 Archived from the original on October 14 2009 Retrieved April 10 2012 a b c d e f g Unlocking the Industrial Midwest A Pictorial History of Locks at the Soo PDF United States Army Corp of Engineers Detroit District website USACE Retrieved May 16 2024 Saint Marys Falls Ship Canal Soo Locks Historic District Soo Canals Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity 2020 Lange Alex The Mighty Soo Construction of the Locks at Sault Ste Marie Michigan Archived January 28 2020 at the Wayback Machine The Unwritten Record National Archives January 5 2017 a b Henry Tom November 5 2021 The Soo Locks The linchpin of Great Lakes shipping is entering a new era The Blade Block Communications Yahoo News Retrieved May 16 2024 New Lock Info Sheet PDF May 2020 Archived PDF from the original on May 15 2021 Retrieved February 9 2021 Construction beginning on new Soo shipping lock Detroit Free Press June 30 2009 Archived from the original on July 7 2009 Retrieved July 13 2009 David Helwig March 30 2002 227 million lock replacement could start this year SooToday com Archived from the original on September 20 2002 Retrieved July 12 2012 Chapter 4 The Watery Boundary United Divide A Linear Portrait of the USA Canada Border The Center for Land Use Interpretation Winter 2015 Archived from the original on June 20 2018 Retrieved November 14 2017 Detroit District Soo Locks Sault Ste Marie United States Army Corps of Engineers Archived from the original on January 31 2011 Retrieved March 5 2011 Soo Locks Engineer s Day June 24 2010 Archived from the original on January 6 2011 Retrieved March 5 2011 Parks Canada Sault Ste Marie Canal National Historic Site of Canada Natural Wonders amp Cultural Treasures Parks Canada Archived from the original on July 18 2006 Further reading editTaylor Paul 2009 Orlando M Poe Civil War General and Great Lakes Engineer Kent State University Press ISBN 978 1 60635 040 9 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Soo Locks Aerial views Soo Locks homepage U S Army Corps of Engineers Soo Locks page Web Camera view of the American locks NOTE This Connection is Untrusted Animation of how the Soo Locks work YouTube video HD video of a ship passing through the MacArthur Lock Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Soo Locks amp oldid 1224215862, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
