Looking E from near upper gates of Lock No. 2
This
lock is 145 feet long and 38 feet wide, with about a 14 foot lift.
The two shrouded electric motors have cogs which engage notches on the beams attached to the lock gates, enabling them to be opened and closed.
The lock gates apparently have hydraulically-controlled openings below the waterline to let water in and out of the locks.
At right is a capstan which could be used to haul a vessel out of the lock.
Across the river below the dam is Thomas Beach, in Owen County.
From
Kentucky River Authority:
Lock and Dam 2 were built from 1836-1842 and support an eleven mile long pool of water. The original dam was a timber crib structure, consisting of an outside frame of timbers filled with dirt and rock, and the original lock was stone masonry. The structures are located thirty one miles above the mouth of the Ohio River. The lock was shut down in 2007 because of structural and mechanical problems.
History:
1836-1842 Original construction of lock and dam
1882 Dam is rebuilt by the Corps of Engineers
Early 1890’s Concrete cap is added to the top of the timber crib dam
1950 Wood lock gates are replaced with steel gates
1977 Repairs are made to the upper guide wall and guide wall ( the walls leading into the approach to the lock)
1980 New concrete is added to the crest of the dam, Surface repairs are made to cracks in the existing concrete cap on the dam, sheet pilling is added in front of the dam
1980’s Repairs are made to the lower guide wall
See also
Kentucky River navigation charts (2011 version, 5 MB PDF)
and
Kentucky River navigation charts (1972 version, 19 MB PDF)
and
Kentucky River Development: The Commonwealth’s Waterway by Leland R. Johnson and Charles E. Parrish (1999, 9 MB PDF)
_____________________________
Kentucky River mile 31
Lockport, Kentucky (in Henry County)
Mar. 1988
file # 88c003
35 mm Kodachrome
Plustek OpticFilm 7600i
Siverfast 8
Picture Window 6
some sharpening (unsharp mask)
JPEG quality 95
