Lock 16 and spillway are west of the stone parking lot at the Municipal water tower. The pedestrian bridge allows access across the canal where the original wooden posts and iron anchors are still visible from the original wooden lock.
Spencerville locks 15 and 16 N had been designed as temporary locks made of White Oak trees, which were plentiful at the time. The flood of 1904 and again in 1913 severely damaged the canal and developed a political climate against maintaining the waterway as a form of transportation.11 As a result, Locks 15N and 16N were never upgraded for transportation; however, spillways were constructed to continue power for a water-powered mill up until 1940.208
A second Spillway is to the south at the former location of Lock 15 N.
page 11 Source:," Miami and Erie Canal Corridor Association Resource Plan “
page208 Source: "Pathways of Progress", David W. Bowman, copyright 1943
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