Hocking Canal Lock 8 and Ellinger Property

180-year-old Hocking Canal Lock No. 8 and a section of the canal in Fairfield County

Lock No. 8 (also known as Ream’s Mill Lock or Clark’s Lock) is located on Horns Mill Road north of Sugar Grove. This lock was abandoned when the canal was shut down in the 1890’s and is in excellent condition with only a few missing canal stones.

 

AOA partnered with the Canal Society of Ohio to preserve the 180-year-old Hocking Canal Lock No. 8 and a section of the canal in Fairfield County. The Canal Society donated funds to help purchase the canal structure while AOA utilized Clean Ohio grant funds to purchase the canal property.

 

Owners Ronnie and Rita Williams worked with AOA for several years to help preserve this piece of local heritage, saving it from demolition and sale for the sandstone blocks.

 

AOA is very grateful to neighbors John and Erin Ramsey who donated a small piece of adjacent property that helped facilitate the acquisition.  

 

AOA also worked with the Ellinger family to preserve a 37-acre Hocking River riparian and floodplain property on the north side of Sugar Grove. Twenty acres of highly eroded river frontage were purchased with Clean Ohio funds and will be replanted and returned to a bottomland forest habitat. The Ellinger family donated a conservation easement on the 17-acre remainder of the property that will continue to be farmed. 

Old Hocking Canal Remnant