Last updated: May 19, 2023
Place
C&O Canal Tidelock
NPS / Claire Hassler
Quick Facts
Amenities
2 listed
Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Scenic View/Photo Spot
Coal boats navigating the C&O Canal could use the tidelock to lock through between the Potomac River and Rock Creek, The used the last 1/4 of mile of the creek. Canal boats could then be taken nearby wharf or down river to unload at a power plant or warehouse along the Potomac. A dam with a waste gate went across the mouth of Rock Creek and was used to maintain a steady water level in Rock Creek for canal operations instead of having the creek get lower with a low tide. There was a connector canal to the Washington City Canal that once existed where Constitution Ave is today.