Please join us on Sunday, January 19, at 10 a.m. as the City of Alexandria and Carr Properties (our client) invite the public to view remains from an Alexandria Canal lock and basin in Old Town North. Details are located on the City of Alexandria’s calendar of events.
WSSI archeologists recently unearthed the remains of an Alexandria Canal lock and basin at the former Waterman Place office building, which is under redevelopment in the City of Alexandria. Carr Properties hired us to conduct research and archeological excavations on the property in compliance with the City Archaeological Code. Learn more here.
Construction of the Alexandria Canal began on July 4, 1831, but was not fully open to commercial traffic until 1845. From its connection with the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal in Georgetown, D.C., the canal crossed the Potomac River via a stone and timber aqueduct and ran for approximately seven miles before terminating at a wide turning basin lying northwest of Montgomery and N. Pitt Streets. The canal then dropped approximately 40 feet in elevation via a series of four locks and basins, before emptying back out into the Potomac River. The canal was an early success, and industrial development sprang up near the canal to take advantage of the new transportation network. However, the canal soon lost ground to competition from the railroads, declaring bankruptcy and closing in 1886. The canal was completely infilled by the early 20th century.
Historic maps and records indicate that Lock No. 4 and Basin No. 3 lay within the city block bounded by N. Pitt, Montgomery, and N. Royal Streets in the City of Alexandria, Virginia, and the WSSI and city archeologists were delighted to find the massive stone northern wall, portions of the southern wall, and the entire wooden floor of the canal lock had been preserved, despite development in the 1980s. This discovery and the archeological data that can be recovered from this site are significant for understanding this Alexandria landmark.
