Huron in Erie County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
The Legacy of the Huron Docks
1906 Dock Improvements / New Electric Coal Dumper 1937
1906 Dock Improvements. In the early 1900s the lake vessels were getting larger and needed more water and room to turn around when emptied. In 1906 the Army Corps of Engineers widened Huron Harbor from 120 to 180 feet and extended the west break wall. In the same year the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad announced it would spend $1 million on dock improvements, including the construction of a second slip for both ore and coal.
A new slip and winding or turning basin was built on 200 acres of marshland upriver from slip #1.This meant that the Berlin Road Bridge, which connected the east side of Huron with downtown, had to be closed. The bridge was located on the south end of the Wheeling yards and was blocking the expansion of the shipping channel and turning basin. A new bridge was built over the river a little farther south of the docks.
New Electric Coal Dumper 1937. In 1937 the docks were improved by installing a new electric car dumper on the north side of slip #1. It was the most modern coal dumper on the lakes at the time, with a capacity of unloading sixty 70-ton cars per hour.
When a car was emptied it was put back on the track and rolled down away from the dumper up the kickback. The empty car reversed direction on the kickback and rolled through the switch behind it into the empty yard. The dumper handled one car a minute.
Erected 2018 by the Huron Historical Society thehuronhistoricalsociety.org.
Location. 41° 23.81′ N, 82° 33.094′ W. Marker is in Huron, Ohio, in Erie County. Marker is at the intersection of Main Street and Wall Street, on the right when traveling north on Main Street. It is beside the gazebo at the foot of Wall Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Huron OH 44839, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. John Baptiste Flemmond Huron Lighthouses / Huron’s Maritime History (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Legacy of the Huron Docks (about 600 feet away); Huron / Erie County (approx. 0.2 miles away); Christ Episcopal Church (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Wright House and the Underground Railroad/Old Main Street (approx. 0.2 miles away); a different marker also named Legacy of the Huron Docks (approx. ¼ mile away); The Huron Playhouse (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Huron.
Categories. • Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars • Waterways & Vessels •
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Credits. This page was last revised on November 6, 2019. This page originally submitted on November 6, 2019, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 44 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on November 6, 2019, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.