The Peoria Lock and Dam is a historic

lock Lock(s) or Locked may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainme ...

and

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

complex on the

Illinois River The Illinois River () is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River at approximately in length. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, the river has a drainage basin of . The Illinois River begins with the confluence of the Des Plaines ...

at Creve Coeur,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. The complex was built in 1938-39 as part of an effort to make the river navigable and establish a route for barges between

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

. The

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...

designed the complex; their influence is particularly evident in the dam's control station, as the State of Illinois designed most other dam control stations along the river. The lock has a standard chamber, similar to other locks on the river, and a vertical lift of . The dam is long and includes 108

wicket gate A wicket gate, or simply a wicket, is a pedestrian door or gate, particularly one built into a larger door or into a wall or fence. Use in fortifications Wickets are typically small, narrow doors either alongside or within a larger castle or ...

s and a

Tainter gate The Tainter gate is a type of radial arm floodgate used in dams and canal locks to control water flow. It is named for its inventor, the Wisconsin structural engineer Jeremiah Burnham Tainter. Tainter, an employee of the lumber firm Knapp, ...

; it is one of two Illinois dams that still use wicket gates. The control station is for the most part a large, functional building, though it has

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

surrounds at the main entrance. The district also contains an original maneuver boat designed to raise and lower the dam's wicket gates; the boat is still used and is one of four boats of its kind left in the United States. The complex was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on March 10, 2004. Significant repairs were made during July through October 2020. After securing a multi-million dollar federal funding appropriation in 2022, the Peoria Lock and Dam is expected to further update its infrastructure.

References

Dams on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Dams completed in 1939 National Register of Historic Places in Tazewell County, Illinois Illinois River Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Transportation buildings and structures in Tazewell County, Illinois {{TazewellCountyIL-NRHP-stub