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 | Navigation in the Muscle Shoals
The area called Muscle Shoals extended from Elk River to Florence, Alabama
and featured a series of rapids, islands, reefs, and bars. It divided
the Tennessee River into two sections and presented the single greatest
obstacle to river navigation.
In 1827, Congress authorized a survey of Muscle Shoals. A canal was
begun around the Big Shoals in 1830, but it could not overcome the many
obstacles which made its operation impractical. This was a pattern
followed by many later projects.
Another canal was opened in 1890 by Captain George W. Goethals, builder
of the Panama Canal. It included Riverton Lock, a 26-foot lift over
Colbert Shoals. In Spite of the lock being the highest ever built up
to that point, towboats still could not negotiate the area safely.
Tennessee Canal was to be the first canal around Big Muscle Shoals.
It was 14.5 miles, 60 feet wide, and 6 feet deep. It contained 17 locks and
cost $644,594.71. It's construction was abandoned in 1837 due to lack
of funding.
The second canal around Big Muscle Shoals was 14.5 miles long also.
It had 9 locks and a total lift capacity of 85 feet. The system
included another canal at Elk River Shoals and a navigation channel at
Little Muscle Shoals. The Elk River Canal was 1.5 miles long. It
had 2 locks and a total lift of 23 feet. The entire project cost was
$3,191,726.50.
Railways established routes around the shoals to provide shippers of
produce located above the shoals with access to the Mississippi Valley.
These connections helped provide transportation variety.
After the creation of TVA, the Corps of Engineers plan to develop the
Tennessee as one river system was carried out. The Wheeler project ,
along with Pickwick and Wilson, eliminated the dangers of the shoals from
river navigation.
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| Lock History
Construction of the Wheeler Auxiliary Lock was started in 1933.
Although work continued on it until 1937, the lock was put into operation in
1934. The main lock was begun in 1960. It began operating May 8, 1963.
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| More About the Wheeler Name
The Wheeler Locks are named for a Confederate cavalry general named
Joseph Wheeler. Wheeler fought alongside leaders like Nathan
Bedford Forrest and W.H. "Red" Jackson. One of his more famous
encounters was a raid on the Federal forces of General W.S. Rosencrans
as they moved from Nashville on December 26,1862 on their way to attack
the Confederate forces under General Bragg at Murfreesboro.
Wheeler skirted the Federal column, destroying most of four wagon trains
carrying Union supplies for the coming siege.
Later, General Wheeler headed U.S. volunteers in the Spanish-American
War. He was eventually elected to Congress as well. In 1898,
he introduced a long series of bills proposing the Muscle Shoals be
developed for navigation. These bills eventually led to the
creation of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). |
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