Form Object
Champlain
Canal Lock #5
Canal Lock #5
Lock 5 of the new Champlain Canal is located in the town of
Saratoga just north of the village of Schuylerville. The lock was built
between 1908 and 1911 and lifts boats 18 feet. The original
Champlain Canal was completed in 1822 and was a great impetus
to the growth and development of the town of Saratoga and villages
of Schuylerville and Victory. A large basin was located in
Schuylerville and was the nucleus of commercial activity, with many
warehouses and related businesses being built in the area. As the
canal boats became larger, the canal was moved from the old
hand-dug channel to the Hudson River, with a series of new, larger
locks that could accommodate bigger boats and raise and lower
them greater heights. (Courtesy author's collection.)
The following text and post card images are from
the book: Saratoga by Thomas N. Wood III.
(Permission has been requested to use them)
A construction site of Lock 5 is pictured with the new
Champlain Canal just north of the village of Schuylerville. The
Liberty Wallpaper Mill can be seen in the background.
(Courtesy Tim and Deb Lagoe collection.)
Construction of Lock 5 cost approximately $1 million. At
the time, this was considered an exorbitant sum of money.
(Courtesy Tim and Deb Lagoe collection.)
The walls of the new canal at Lock 5 are partially completed in
this c. 1910 image. (Courtesy Tim and Deb Lagoe collection.)
This view shows the generators in the Lock 5 powerhouse. The
plant had the capability of generating all of the power needed to
operate the lock. (Courtesy Tim and Deb Lagoe collection.)
The Champlain Canal was first opened in 1823 and went through a continual series of enlargements especially in 1916
when the present version was opened, running some 61 miles from Waterford to Lake Champlain.