- Beauharnois Canal
The Beauharnois Canal is a Canadian
canal located in southwesternQuebec . The canal is part of theSt. Lawrence Seaway .Located between the cities of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield and Beauharnois, the canal connects Lake Saint-Francis to the west (upstream) with
Lake Saint-Louis to the northeast (downstream), bypassing a series of rapids on theSt. Lawrence River .History
The original Beauharnois Canal measured 15 nm (24 km) in length and was built on the south side of the St. Lawrence River, opening in 1843.
The canal became obsolete and was superseded by the
Soulanges Canal in 1899 which ran on the north side of the St. Lawrence River.The present Beauharnois Canal was built between 1929-1932 on the south side of the St. Lawrence River, measuring 24.5 km in length. This canal was built as part of a
hydroelectric development at Beauharnois which saw adam and power house built to take advantage of the 24 m (83 ft drop between Lake St. Francis and Lake St. Louis. Some of the electricity is used to power a largealuminum smelter.In the 1950s, the Beauharnois Canal had 2 locks added as part of the
St. Lawrence Seaway project.
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.