Near Phillipsport in Sullivan County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Locks

Delaware & Hudson Canal

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 29, 2019

1. Locks Marker

Inscription. The canal ran downhill from Honesdale to Port Jerivis, then uphill to Summitville, New York, then sloped down until it reached the Hudson River at Rondout Harbor (Kingston), an elevation change of about 972-feet over all. Along the way, 108 locks equalized the water level so that the boats could move smoothly along. These simple but clever devices, which originally required two operators, or tenders, "locked" the boats into a water-filled chamber made of stone, sometimes lined with wood. According to canal folklore, a boat fit into a lock like a hand in a glove. Gates let water in to raise the boat up to level, or released water to lower the boat to level, depending which way it was heading. The average elevation per lock was ten feet, and each lock-through, which took about twenty minutes, used approximately 50,000 to 100,000 gallons of water. Initially the locks measured nine ½ feet wide and seventy five feet long; but in 1852, to accommodate larger boats, they were enlarged to fifteen feet wide and ninety feet long. In an early example of technology displacing people, changes to the locking system in 1865 so improved

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the process that it made lock-tending a one-man operation, putting the second tender out of work.

Besides operating the lock, tenders were responsible for maintaining the water level below the lock; the water level above the lock was the job of the tender up the line. Most lock tenders lived in little company-owned houses perched right on the canal banks and often also did some farming or ran grocery stores or taverns for boatmen and their families. Locks typically operated from sun-up to sundown. In busy periods locks stayed open until 10 in the evening, all night if a freeze threatened; but were closed, as was the entire canal, on Sundays.

Erected by Delaware & Hudson Canal Linear Park.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Man-Made Features • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1852.

Location. 41° 37.982′ N, 74° 27.123′ W. Marker is near Phillipsport, New York, in Sullivan County. It can be reached from Bova Road 0.1 miles west of U.S. 209, on the right when traveling west. Marker is located along the canal trail at the Bova Road Interpretive

Marker detail: Godeffroy Lock Tender’s House image. Click for full size.

Collection of the Minisink Valley Historical Society

2. Marker detail: Godeffroy Lock Tender’s House

Center of the Delaware & Hudson Canal Linear Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Phillipsport NY 12769, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Upstate New York

and in the Hudson Valley.

It is also in the American Northeast,

in the Mid-Atlantic,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland

and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Waste Weirs (a few steps from this marker); Canal Basin & Sluiceway (within shouting distance of this marker); Lock No. 50 (within shouting distance of this marker); Ending at Rondout (within shouting distance of this marker); Dry Docks (within shouting distance of this marker); Life on the Canal (within shouting distance of this marker); Demise of the Canal (within shouting distance of this marker); Welcome to Sullivan County's Parks (about 300 feet away, measured in a

Marker detail: Godeffroy-Port Clinton Lock image. Click for full size.

Collection of the Minisink Valley Historical Society

3. Marker detail: Godeffroy-Port Clinton Lock

direct line). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Phillipsport.

Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Delaware & Hudson Canal

Marker detail: Lock Gate Diagrams image. Click for full size.

Collection of the Minisink Valley Historical Society

4. Marker detail: Lock Gate Diagrams

Marker detail: Sam Taylor image. Click for full size.

Collection of the Minisink Valley Historical Society

5. Marker detail: Sam Taylor

Lock tender Sam Taylor waits for the next boat to enter
Lock No. 32 - which was located west of Ellenville.

Locks Marker • <i>wide view<br>Lock No. 50 ruins in background)</i> image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 29, 2019

6. Locks Marker • wide view
Lock No. 50 ruins in background)

Credits. This page was last revised on November 22, 2019. It was originally submitted on November 21, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 340 times since then and 23 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on November 21, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on November 22, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.