Tipp City in Miami County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 27, 2008

1. Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 Marker (Side A)

Inscription.
[Side A:]
This section of the Miami and Erie Canal, constructed from 1833-1837, was vital to this region's commerce and development. It allowed for farmers and businesses to get their goods to larger markets at a lower cost and faster speed than by hauling overland. Passengers could also travel across the area by canal boat. John Clark saw the location of the Lock 15, situated in Monroe Township at the junction of the Milton-Carlisle Pike (Main Street), as an opportunity and in 1840, platted the new town of Tippecanoe City (now Tipp City). Many types of commerce and trade grew up around the canal including boarding houses, saloons, a tannery, and a mill. Some of the original buildings still stand, such as a mill to the west of Lock 15, John Clark's home at the southeast corner of Main and First streets, and the hotel at the northeast corner of Main and Second streets. (Continued on other side)

[Side B:]
(Continued from other side) Travel on the Miami and Erie Canal was limited to four miles per hour for boats pulled by mules in order to prevent boat wash from eroding the clay banks of the canals. A system of locks

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allowed a canal boat to be raised or lowered, depending on the direction the boat was traveling. Constructed of limestone blocks, Lock 15 is typical of most Miami and Erie Canal locks. Large wooden gates were located on each end of the lock. A boat would enter the lock and the gate behind it would close, while the opposite gate would open, allowing the water lever to be raised or lowered before the boat could proceed to its next stop. The advent of the railroad was the beginning of the end for the canal system. Due to extensive damage, most of the Miami and Erie Canal was abandoned following the Great Flood of 1913.

Erected 2007 by Miami County Milestones Committee, Miami County Foundation, Troy Foundation, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 24-55.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Industry & Commerce • Man-Made Features • Settlements & Settlers • Waterways & Vessels. In addition, it is included in the Ohio Historical Society / The Ohio History Connection, and the The Miami & Erie Canal series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1840.

Location. 39° 57.691′ N,

Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 Marker (Side B) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 27, 2008

2. Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 Marker (Side B)

84° 10.045′ W. Marker is in Tipp City, Ohio, in Miami County. It is on Main Street, on the left when traveling east. Marker is in Canal Lock Park, just east of the Tipp Roller Mills. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 325 E Main Street, Tipp City OH 45371, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Ohio’s Dayton Metro,

in the Miami Valley,

and in the Till Plains.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The Miami Erie Canal (here, next to this marker); Thomas Brunaker Building (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Irene Shefmire House (about 500 feet away); International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union House (about 500 feet away); Bill Sloan Building (about

Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 27, 2008

3. Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 and Marker

Looking north.

500 feet away); Samuel & Ethel Moore Building (about 600 feet away); Cleo L. Wampler Building (about 600 feet away); McConnaughey & Young Building (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tipp City.

Also see . . . Ohio’s Historic Canals. Tipp City. Lock 15, of stone masonry, just N of Main Street. Picturesque old grist mill structure adjacent. (Submitted on April 30, 2009, by Syd Whittle of Mesa, Arizona.)

Canal Lock Park and Lock 15 Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 27, 2008

4. Canal Lock Park and Lock 15 Marker

Looking west from park entrance.

Reproduction Canal Boat image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 27, 2008

5. Reproduction Canal Boat

Mill Next to Lock image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 27, 2008

6. Mill Next to Lock

Small annex with door on right of mill was lock tender's office.

Tipp City Corporate Limit Sign image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 27, 2008

7. Tipp City Corporate Limit Sign

Tipp City
Founded 1840
Name derived from presidential slogan
"Tippecanoe and Tyler Too"

Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Doda, October 27, 2024

8. Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 Marker

Photographed by Craig Doda, October 27, 2024

9. Miami and Erie Canal Lock 15 Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on November 1, 2024. It was originally submitted on April 27, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 3,807 times since then and 197 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on April 27, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. 7. submitted on June 7, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. 8, 9. submitted on November 1, 2024, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.