Welland Canal

There have been four Welland Canals, connecting Lake Ontario and Lake Erie.

40 wooden locks with a minimum size of 33.5 m by 6.7 m (110 x 22 feet) and a depth of 2.4 m (8

specifications of the various Welland Canals

year built	number of locks	length	beam	draft	maximum tonnage
1829	40	33.5 m	6.7 m	2.4 m
1844	27	45.7 m	8.1 m	2.7 m
1887	26	82.3 m	13.7 m	4.3 m	3,000
1932	8	225.5 m	23.8 m	8 m	32,000 tons

The current canal has pairs of locks, permitting vessels to proceed in both directions simultaneously. Seven pairs of northern locks are situatated on the Niagara Escarpment, and raise or lower vessels a total of 99.5 meters. The locks take eleven minutes to fill or empty. The eighth lock is at the Southern end of the canal. It is used to raise or lower vessels the small amounts to the current level of the lake -- which can vary.

There are no locks needed to travel from Lake Erie to Lake St Clair, to Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Vessels must transit one lock to travel from Lake Huron to Lake Superior. There are several parallel locks on the St Mary's River. The largest lock is significantly larger than the locks on the Welland Canal. There are approximately two dozen vessels restricted to the upper lakes.