Colbert Shoals Canal - Riverton Lock

George Washington Goethals.
United States Army Officer and Civil Engineer


Educated at West Point he was "the man who knew it would work".
In 1891, Goethals was promoted to captain. He soon was placed
in charge of the completion of the Muscle Shoals
Canal along the Tennessee River near Florence, Alabama.
This was his first independent command, and his
responsibilities included the design and
construction of the Riverton Lock
at Colbert Shoals. His recommendation of a single lock
with an unprecedented lift of twenty-six feet was
initially opposed by his superiors in Washington,
and he was forced to persuade the conservative
army engineers of the merits of his design.
The lock's successful construction set a world record
for lock height. The success of the Riverton Lock
inspired the eventual adoption of
high-lift locks elsewhere, including those for
the Panama Canal.