by Becca Andre
Aqueduct – A bridge-like structure that carried the canal and towpath across a waterway or other obstacle.
Balance Beam – The long, wooden beams that form the top of a lock’s miter gates. The length of the beams helped balance the weight of the gate and made it easier to manually open.
Boatman – A person who owned or worked aboard a canal boat. The term could refer to a man or a woman (yes, in those days, women called themselves boatmen).
Bow – The front end of a canal boat.
Bow Cabin (Bunkhouse) – The cabin in the front of the boat where the non-family members of the crew slept.
Bowsman – A canal boat worker who secured the bowline around a snubbing post when the boat was entering a lock. This stopped the boat and kept it from slamming into the miter gates at the far end.
Bridge Plank – A wooden plank used to walk the mule team from the stable to towpath and vice versa. It was stored aboard the boat when not in use.
Catwalk – A walkway connecting the decks (or roofs) of the cabins on a three-cabin freighter. It made it easier to get around the boat when the cargo areas were full.
Deadeye – An iron bar or eyelet mounted to the roof of the bow cabin and used to secure the towline.
Doubling – The ability to use a lock as found. The water level did not need to be adjusted before steering the boat into the lock chamber.
Driver – The crewman who controlled the mule team on the towpath.
Dry Dock – A chamber built beside the canal and used for boat maintenance. Once the boat was floated in, the water could be drained, exposing the hull for repair work.
Fit a Lock – The process of preparing a lock for the boat. If the water in the lock wasn’t on the same level as the boat, the water would need to be raised or lowered.
Freighter – A canal boat used to carry freight.
Guard Lock – A lock that connected the canal to the pooled water above a dam. A guard lock raised the boat to the level of the pooled water and guarded the canal below the lock from high water.
Hatch – A trapdoor in the roof of a cabin that allowed access to the cabin by means of a ladder. Hatches were used when the cargo holds were full.
Headway – A command shouted by the captain to indicated that the boat had sufficient speed to enter a lock. The towline would be detached and boat allowed to coast forward on its own.
Heelpath – The bank of the canal opposite the towpath.
Level – A section of canal between locks.
Light Boat – A canal boat with no cargo.
Lines – Ropes. The common lines on a canal boat were the towline, bow line, and stern line.
Lock – A chamber closed on each end by miter gates. Most locks on the Ohio & Erie were made of stone.
Lock Chamber – The space between the gates within a lock.
Locking Through – The process of taking a boat through a lock.
Miter Gates – The large wooden gates at either end of a lock chamber.
Paddle – A small “door” in the lower section of a miter gate that allowed water to flow in or out of the lock chamber. The door was controlled by the “paddle gear” at the top of the gate.
Packet – A canal boat typically constructed with one cabin that ran the length of the boat. Packets were used to haul passengers rather than cargo.
Rudder – A flat board hung vertically at the back of the boat and used to steer the vessel.
Snubbing Post – A heavy post embedded in the ground beside each lock. The bow line was wrapped several times around the snubbing post to bring a boat to a stop upon entering the lock chamber.
Stable Cabin – The center cabin on a three-cabin freighter that housed the mules.
Steersman – A canal boat crew member who steered the boat via a tiller mounted near the back of the boat.
Stern – The rear part of a canal boat.
Stern Cabin (Aft Cabin) – The cabin in the back of the boat. Typically where the captain and his or her family lived.
Tandem Hitching – An arrangement of towing animals hitched one behind the other.
Tiller – A horizontal handle attached to the rudder post. The tiller was used to control the rudder in order to steer the boat.
Tiller Deck – A small rail-enclosed deck behind the stern deck where the tiller was installed.
Towline – A braided rope up to 200 feet long used to hitch the mule team to the canal boat.
Towpath – The path on one side of the canal where the mule team and driver walked.
Transom – The stern end of the boat where a boat’s name was painted.
Acknowledgements
It’s time again to thank all folks who help me make my stories better. I’d to thank:
Kendra Highley, Lindsay Buroker, Cindy Wilkinson, Genevieve Turcotte, and Walt Scrivens for taking the time to help me make this book the best it can be.
Shelley Holloway for her editing expertise.
Glendon Haddix and the team at Streetlight Graphics for the amazing cover art and formatting. (Check out my gorgeous website. They did that, too!)
And you, kind reader, for letting me entertain you. I really appreciate the reviews, comments, and emails. Thank you!
About the Author
Becca Andre lives in southern Ohio with her husband, two children, and an elderly Jack Russell Terrier. A love of science and math (yes, she’s weird like that), led to a career as a chemist where she blows things up far more infrequently than you’d expect. Other interests include: chocolate, hard rock, and slaying things on the Xbox.
For more on her books, upcoming releases, and random ramblings, stop by http://beccaandre.com
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