LOCKPORT, N.Y. — Last year, some sculptures were placed on the stairs of the Lockport locks, and now even more have been added.
Five statues are being used to recreate a photo that was taken of some of the original lock tenders back in 1897. There are still six more left to go.
These statues are part of the Lockport Tenders Tribute Monument. It's meant to celebrate the workers who manned the locks, day in and day out.
The Lockport Locks Heritage District is still doing a major reconstruction project to repair locks 67 through 71 of the Erie Canal. Three of five are done.
Chairman Dave Kinyon of the Lockport Locks Heritage District says while that project continues, it was also vital to get the statues installed because of all those connected to the locks.
"That's an engineering accomplishment. The Lockport Tenders Tribute Monument tells the story of the people, the people of Lockport, the people who worked to operate to lock through those thousands of vaults yearly that traveled west to the nation's interior and then brought back products to bring to the east coast communities," Kinyon said.
Some major donors of the project include the County of Niagara, which has given $500,000.
Donors also include the New York State Canal Corporation, the New York State Department of State, and the Grigg Lewis Foundation.
Kinyon says the heritage district hopes to have the last two locks completely restored by 2025.
That's the 200th anniversary of the completion of the Erie Canal.