ST. MARYS, OH (WLIO) - A long-lost town in Auglaize County will have a lasting marker of its unique impact during the days of the Miami Erie Canal. The marker was unveiled at Lock 14 Park to mark a small community that grew around the canal lock and the growth of western Ohio because of the canal. There was a general store, school, homes, and a sawmill around the Lock which was a stopping point for travelers and businessmen on the canal until a fire in the 1870s destroyed the community. So, the Auglaize County Historical Society, the Miami Erie Canal Corridor Association, and the Heritage Trail Park District worked together to put up an informational marker to remember a community that was nearly forgotten.
“It’s a very interesting place. It’s the first lock out of St. Marys, so it impounded water all the way back into St. Marys,” says Neal Brady, Director, Miami Erie Canal Corridor Association. “It was a point of commerce. When peddlers and business people came in here to stop at the lock, this was a point where people were selling and buying things right off the canal boat.”
“I didn’t know about Lock 14 until Neal suggested we put a marker here,” adds Rachel Barber, Director of the Auglaize County Historical Society. “It’s a forgotten story that we have been able to focus on and help people understand the history of the canal in their own backyard.”
The Heritage Trials Park District is gearing up for their annual Walk with Nature Fall Festival on October 15th to get residents out to explore the canal towpath trail and places like Lock 14 that were part of its history.
