Killen in Lauderdale County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)

Muscle Shoals Canal

1836 - 1918

Photographed by sandra Hughes, July 2, 2009

1. Muscle Shoals Canal 1836~1918 Marker

Marker is located on Hwy 72 in front of Killen Church of Christ, in Killen, Al.

Inscription. Lock Six, headquarters of Muscle Shoals Canal, was located 1.3 miles south of here. An 1836 attempt to build a bypass canal around the shoals proved unsuccessful. On November 10, 1890 the canal from Rogersville to Florence was successfully completed. The river fell 85 feet in 14½ miles requiring nine locks. Canal was closed in 1918 and later covered by backwaters from Wilson and Wheeler Dams. Jesse James robbed the U.S. Payroll near Lock Six in 1881.

Erected by Brooks High School Classes.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Notable Places • Waterways & Vessels. In addition, it is included in the Jesse James series list. A significant historical month for this entry is November 1905.

Location. 34° 51.436′ N, 87° 32.527′ W. Marker is in Killen, Alabama, in Lauderdale County. It is at the intersection of U.S. 72 and Lock 6 Road on U.S. 72. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1560 Highway 72, Killen AL 35645, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Alabama

and in the Shoals.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Deep South,

in Appalachia,

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

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Town of Killen (approx. 0.2 miles away); Killen and the Canal System (approx. one mile away); Tate Springs Estate Early 1800’s (approx. 2½ miles away); Bainbridge (approx.

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3.9 miles away); Earliest Methodist Congregation in Lauderdale County, Alabama (approx. 4.7 miles away); Clyde Carter House (approx. 4.7 miles away); Lone Cedar Church of Christ (approx. 4.7 miles away); Confederate Retreat at the Tennessee River (approx. 4.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Killen.

Muscle Shoals Canal ~Lock 6 image. Click for full size.

Photographed by sandra Hughes, September 6, 2009

2. Muscle Shoals Canal ~Lock 6

Credits. This page was last revised on July 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 4, 2010, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. This page has been viewed 2,985 times since then and 49 times this year. Last updated on March 9, 2010, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 4, 2010, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.