Property Record
FOX RIVER, END OF LOCK RD
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Princeton Canal [A] |
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| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 96283 |
| Location (Address): | FOX RIVER, END OF LOCK RD |
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| County: | Green Lake |
| City: | |
| Township/Village: | Princeton |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | 16 |
| Range: | 11 |
| Direction: | E |
| Section: | 35 |
| Quarter Section: | NE |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: | SW |
| Year Built: | 1877 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 19902019 |
| Historic Use: | canal |
| Architectural Style: | NA (unknown or not a building) |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Other |
| Architect: | Army Corps of Engineers |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| National Register Listing Date: | |
| State Register Listing Date: |
| Additional Information: | A 'site file' exists for this property named 'Princeton Lock, Dam, and Canal'. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office. The Princeton Lock, Dam, and Canal were constructed between 1877 and 1897 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in an effort to provide navigable waters for commercial steamboats and freight barges between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers. Along the Upper Fox River, lock and dam systems were constructed at Governor’s Bend, Montello, Grand River (dam no longer extant), Princeton, White River (dam no longer extant), Berlin, and Eureka. Each dam was about 180 feet long and was constructed of timber cribs with rock fill and covered by wood planking with a concrete cap. Canals (also referred to as lock chambers) typically measured between 35 and 45 feet wide and 100 feet or more in length; these were constructed of large sandstone blocks and were originally lined with wood planking. The system of locks and dams along the Upper Fox River were operated for more than fifty years until the arrival and expansion of railroad networks throughout the state rendered river navigation obsolete. In 1962, the USACE transferred ownership of the Upper Fox River locks and dams to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Today, Princeton Lock and Dam (like the other former dam sites) is managed for recreational use, providing boat access to the Fox River. |
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| Bibliographic References: |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |