H.H. Buckman Locks
N 29° 32.776 W 081° 43.665
17R E 429492 N 3268730
These locks are part of the now defunct Cross Florida Barge Canal.
Waymark Code: WM4QAE
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 09/19/2008
Views: 22
H. H.. Buckman Lock
Lock Size: 600 feet long and 84 feet wide, and 14 feet over gates sills. The top edge of the concrete gate sill on the upstream side is 6 feet above sea level. Cost: $5.5 million. In addition, some 7 miles of 12 foot-deep canal on either side of the lock have been completed at a cost of $1.5 million.
Purpose of Lock: To lift boats and barges from the level of the St. Johns River to the level of the Rodman Reservoir, about 18 feet above the mean sea level.
Type Gates: Miter gates, which resemble large barn doors. The gates seal at an angle so that water pressure on the upstream side keeps them sealed.
Weight, Size of Gates: Each leaf of the downstream (easterly) gates is 48 feet wide and 41 feet high and about 4 feet thick. The upstream (westerly) gates are 48 feet wide, 19 1/2 feet high and 4 feet thick. Each leaf in the upstream gates weighs 80,640 pounds, while the leaves in the downstream gates weigh 158,449 pounds each.
Type Lock: Concrete with reinforced steel, constructed on wooden poles driven into the ground to a solid foundation.
Number of Pilings: Some 2,141,000 pilings (wooden poles) were used as a foundation for the lock. If placed end to end the wooden poles would stretch about 40 miles.
Gallons of Water: Some 8,501,170 gallons of water are used in each lockage when the elevation of the reservoir is at 20 feet above sea level.
Transit Time: Normally it takes 15-20 minutes to lock a craft through the lock. This may vary slightly with the number of vessels going through at one time. Closing the gates takes about 2 minutes.
Filling and Emptying: Filling and emptying the lock chamber is by gravity. When filling the lock chamber, large valves are opened on the upstream side to allow water from Rodman Reservoir to flow into the lock chamber, via a 10 foot-square tunnel and 17 ports on either side of the walls. When emptying the lock chamber the water is discharged via the 17 ports, tunnels and downstream valves to the downstream side of the lock chamber.
Water Level Gauges: Water level gauges inside the lock chamber and immediately beyond each end of the lock chamber show depths of water above the bottom.
Construction Time: Construction of the Buckman Lock was started in November 1964. The Lock opened on December 14, 1968.
Construction Method: A 50 foot-deep hole was excavated to the dimensions of the Lock structure and was dewatered, and construction took place in the dry. When the concrete and steel lock chamber had been completed, dirt was pushed up to the sides of the lock and plugs of earth between the excavated sections of the canal were removed to allow water to flow into, and out of the lock, to connect the St. Johns River with Rodman Reservoir.
Safety Features:
1) The Lock Tender can only operate the miter gates from the control house located at each gate to assure proper miter and clearance of vessels and people.
2) Lock operators give special instructions to boat operators as needed during locking operations.
3) Pull-chain installed at each end of lock long wing-wall for use by small boats not equipped with signal devices or for boats too small to be observed by the lock operator or for signaling the lock operator.
4) Floating mooring bits for boats and barges to tie-up to in the lock chamber rise and fall with water level in the lock.
5) Standby generator will provide power for operation of the entire lock even when commercial power fails.
6) Lock gates automatically slow down and stop near the full close and full open positions.
7) Special procedures are followed when manatees (endangered aquatic mammals) are in the Lock or approach areas.
Who Operates the Locks: Operations and maintenance activities at the locks are performed by state employees under the direction of the Office of Greenways and Trails, Department of Environmental Protection.
Date of Opening: December 14, 1968
Location of Lock: Eight miles southwest of Palatka in Putnam County. It is located just off of State Road 19.
Waterway Name: Cross Florida Barge Canal
Connected Points:
Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico via the Cross Florida Barge Canal not completed
Type: Lock
Date Opened: 12/14/1968
Elevation Difference (meters): 5.00
Site Status: Operational
Web Site: [Web Link]
Date Closed (if applicable): Not listed
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