Wabash & Erie Canal, Lock No. 2, 8 miles east of Fort Wayne, adjacent to U.S. Route 24, New Haven, Allen County, IN

Significance: Lock No. 2 is an example of a wood lock, many of which once existed along the original line of the Wabash and Erie Canal. More fragile than those supported by dressed stone, locks which were constructed on either the timber frame or crib plan were subject to greater wear, deterioration and rot. Lock No. 2 provides an example of nineteenth century wooden lock technology. Engineered to provide a seven-foot lift, Lock No. 2 was one of three similar locks between Fort Wayne and the Ohio/Indiana state line. It was originally constructed between 1837-43 as a Timber Frame Lock (according to the engineer's report of 1837) and in 1849 it was rebuilt as a Timber Crib Lock, the latter being a sturdier type of wood lock construction. At least one additional major repair and/or reconstruction occurred. Lock No. 2 is locally known by the name of its former lockkeeper, Joseph Gronauer and his family. Their farm and store were located adjacent to the lock on the north side, throughout the years of its operation. The family farmhouse remained intact at the site until its demolition between 1942 and 1945. The 20-mile section of the canal within which Lock No. 2 is located, once formed a link between the Fort Wayne-Lafayette portion of the Wabash and Erie Canal to the west and the Miami and Erie Canal in Ohio, to the east. When it was finally completed in 1843, travel and commerce to the Great Lakes and the eastern seaboard, via Toledo, Ohio became possible for the citizens of Indiana.
Survey number: HAER IN-74