Lock and Lockhouse 25 are located at Mile 30.9 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal towpath. There is a parking area just past the house on Edwards Ferry Road. See the Locks and Lockhouses web page for an interactive location map.
Lock 25 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal is one of approximately two dozen locks that were extended in the 1880s to accommodate two canal boats hooked together—double the boat, double the cargo. However, so few locks were extended that the single boat system was never replaced.
Along with the lock itself stands Lockhouse 25. 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 Chesapeake and Ohio 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!
While such houses once stood at nearly all locks on the C&O Canal, very few survive today. Of those that do remain, most are not open to the public, at least not on any regularly scheduled basis. This makes Lockhouse 25 even more special because it can be rented for overnight stays by those wanting an authentic canal and lockhouse experience. The C&O Canal Trust maintains seven such houses within Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park. See the Lockhouse Rentals web page here on National Park Planner for more information.
Lockhouse 25 is just as it was when it was built back in 1830. While some of the other houses have been outfitted with electricity, staying here is just like camping, but in a house. There is no heat, no electricity, and no running water (a portable toilet is outside).
Each of the rental lockhouses is furnished to represent a specific time period, and because the Edwards Ferry area saw a lot of action during the Civil War, the C&O Canal Trust has furnished the house as it might have been in the 1860s. There are two bedrooms with two twin beds and two trundle beds—beds that slide out from under the main bed—enough for eight people overall. Keep in mind that no linens or pillows are provided other than comforters and mattress pads. A sleeping bag is a good option if you have one.
Cooking is done outdoors on a grill, and you can eat outside at the picnic table or inside on the dining room table. Dishes, pots, and pans are provided, but you must clean up after yourself, including washing dishes. Get the water from the outdoor spigot .3 mile down the towpath. A wash pan is provided.
If you don’t mind spending $110 for a lack of luxury, I highly recommend staying at least one night in one of the rustic lockhouses. I stayed in Lockhouse 22 and Lockhouse 49. The former has no utilities at all and the latter has electricity and heat only. I purposely avoided the modernized houses because I wanted to experience a night close to how those living on the canal back in the 1800s spent every night of their lives. I stayed in Lockhouse 22 on a hot and miserable day and had to deal with mosquitoes, and while I can’t imagine many people wanting to pay good money to put up with such hardships, spending one night to learn what people of the past had to deal with was worth every penny I spent, every drop of sweat I spilled, and every mosquito bite I endured. Of course, if the weather is nice—early spring or late fall—heat and bugs are not an issue. I stayed in Lockhouse 49 in late September and the weather was perfect, so I can’t complain about a thing. To make a reservation, see the C&O Canal Trust’s Canal Quarters web page.
The town of Edwards Ferry was established when the C&O Canal came to this area in 1833, and it disappeared nearly as fast after the canal closed in 1924. In addition to the lock and lockhouse, the town had a store, warehouses, blacksmith shop, and private homes. The ruins of Jacobs Store are still on the property. This was operated by E. E. Jacob up until he drowned in the lock. After that, his three children ran the store until 1906.
Behind the lockhouse are the ruins of what is believed to have been the blacksmith shop. A foundation and part of the chimney are all that remain.
Just a tenth of a mile downstream is the Goose Creek River Lock, an entrance into the canal. Goose Creek is on the opposite side of the Potomac in Virginia. Canal boats could float down the creek and then travel directly across the Potomac and enter the C&O Canal though this lock.
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Last updated on June 23, 2024