Lock 57 at Mile 139.4 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal towpath
Lock 57 is located at Mile 139.4 on the C&O Canal towpath. It cannot be accessed by vehicle, so reaching it requires hiking or biking 1.5 miles (one way) downstream from the parking lot at the Fifteenmile Creek Campground. See the Locks and Lockhouses web page for an interactive location map.
When heading upstream on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, Lock 57 is the last lock until Lock 72 that was constructed using cut stones (limestone). These fit tightly together with mortar and had a very finished look. Locks 58 through 71 were made with uncut stones that had large gaps between them, which wasn’t going to hold water very well. To combat leakage, a wood lining was attached to the walls. In most cases this didn’t work that well, and starting in 1891, many of the locks had the wood replaced with concrete. This was all done to save money due to the expense of getting cut stone to the western end of the canal.
Lock 57 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal is made of cut, limestone blocks
Of particular interest at Lock 57 is the ruins of the former lockhouse. There are ruins of lockhouses at many locks, but usually it is only the foundation that remains. Here, the chimney is still standing as well. It is the only chimney ruins on the canal that I am aware of, and I have visited every lock but two.
Ruins of Lockhouse 57 at Mile 139.4 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal towpath (photo by Jerry Edmundson)
A lockhouse is the residence of the man who is hired to operate the lock. In addition to a yearly salary, he and his family—almost all lockkeepers were family men—lived in the company provided lockhouse and had use of an acre of land for farming. Those who tended multiple locks got extra money per lock, up to two. The locks had to be very close together for the C&O Canal Company to assign multiple locks to one person.
Operating the lock was a year-round, 24-hour-a-day job. When a canal boat approached, the captain would blow a whistle to notify the lockkeeper. If it were nighttime, somebody had to wake up and go to work. Of course that’s the benefit of being a family man—your kids had to get up for the late night and early morning arrivals!
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Last updated on June 30, 2026
