Upper Mississippi River 9-Foot Channel, Lock & Dam No. 8, On Mississippi River near Houston County, MN, Genoa, Vernon County, WI

See HAER MN-20, Upper Mississippi River Nine-Foot Channel Project History, Locks and Dams 3-10, for additional information.
Significance: The Upper Mississippi River Lock and Dam Project represents one of the largest and most ambitious of such undertakings. With roots in the Progressive Era, the project was adopted by New Deal proponents to serve the needs of public employment during the Great Depression. Its successful completion turned the upper reaches of one of the world's largest rivers into a intra-continental canal and settled the question of a fully navigable interior river system through the Midwest. Completion of the system helped allay economic inequities in commercial rail and water freight brought about as a result of the opening of the Panama Canal. Although significantly altering the environment of the upper Mississippi, the project also served as an impetus for the upgrading of municipal drinking water and sewage disposal systems, as well as providing new recreational opportunities, thus, in the end, proving generally beneficial to public welfare.
Survey number: HAER WI-49
Building/structure dates: 1938 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: ca. 1993 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1951 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1952 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1968 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1970 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1981 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1983-1984 Subsequent Work