Landmark North America
Welland Canal
The Welland Canal is a waterway for big ships in Canada. It joins two of the Great Lakes. Water steps called locks lift the ships up and down!
The Welland Canal is a canal 43.5 kilometers long in Ontario, Canada. It joins Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, so ships can go around Niagara Falls. Eight locks lift and lower ships across a height difference of 99.4 meters between the two lakes.
The Welland Canal crosses the Niagara Peninsula of southwestern Ontario for 43.5 km, from Port Weller on Lake Ontario to Port Colborne on Lake Erie, overcoming a 99.4 m height difference and bypassing the Niagara River and Niagara Falls. The first canal opened in 1829; today's Fourth Canal opened in 1932 and has been part of the St. Lawrence Seaway since 1959.
Photo: booledozer, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Discover the Welland Canal
The Welland Canal is in Canada.
It is a long waterway that joins two of the Great Lakes. Big ships sail through it from one lake to the other.
The Welland Canal crosses the Niagara Peninsula in Ontario, Canada. It runs from Port Weller on Lake Ontario to Port Colborne on Lake Erie.
The two lakes lie at different heights, and between them are the rough Niagara River and Niagara Falls. The canal lets ships go around them, climbing or dropping 99.4 meters on the way.
The Canadian Encyclopedia describes the Welland Canal as a navigational canal 43.5 km long across the Niagara Peninsula of southwestern Ontario, from Port Weller on Lake Ontario to Port Colborne on Lake Erie. It overcomes a height difference of 99.4 m between the two lakes and bypasses the turbulent Niagara River and Niagara Falls.
The Seaway's operator gives its length as 23.5 nautical miles and calls it the link from Lake Ontario to Lake Erie.
- Where
- Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada
- Length
- 43.5 km
- Locks
- 8
- Height difference
- 99.4 m
Four canals
The first Welland Canal opened a very long time ago, in 1829.
People later built new canals. The one ships use today opened in 1932.
The first Welland Canal opened in 1829. The Canadian Encyclopedia says the achievement is mainly credited to William Hamilton Merritt, a businessman from St. Catharines.
Later, new canals were built, often on different routes: the Second Canal opened in 1845, the Third in 1887 and the Fourth, the one ships use today, in 1932. Pieces of the older canals can still be seen.
The first Welland Canal opened in 1829, an achievement the Canadian Encyclopedia attributes primarily to St. Catharines businessman William Hamilton Merritt. Major works followed at various times, often on different routes: the Second Canal (opened 1845), the Third Canal (1887) and the modern Fourth Canal (1932), with a 13.4 km bypass at Welland, Ontario, opened in 1973.
The canal has been part of the St. Lawrence Seaway since 1959, the year the Seaway opened to deep-draft navigation.
How the locks lift ships
A lock is like a water step.
A ship floats in, the gates close, and water fills or empties the lock. The ship goes up or down with the water!
The canal has eight locks. Seven are at the north end, between Thorold and Lake Ontario, and one is at Port Colborne near the southern entrance.
The Seaway says its locks are filled and emptied by gravity. Each one is 233.5 meters long and 24.4 meters wide, and about 91 million liters of water fill a lock in just 7 to 10 minutes.
Seven lift locks stand between Thorold and Lake Ontario on the northern length, and one guard lock (the Seaway calls it a control lock) is at Port Colborne near the southern entrance. Locks 4, 5 and 6 form a series of twinned flight locks 1,249.7 m long with a rise of 42.5 m.
The Seaway's locks are filled and emptied by gravity; each is 233.5 m long, 24.4 m wide and 9.1 m deep over the sill, and fills with about 91 million liters in 7 to 10 minutes.
Locks, bridges and ships
Locks 4, 5 and 6 come in pairs, side by side. They go up one after another, like stairs for ships.
Bridges over the canal lift up to let the ships pass!
Locks 4, 5 and 6 are twinned flight locks: pairs of locks side by side, one right after another, together rising 42.5 meters.
The canal is crossed by 11 lift bridges, 3 tunnels, one high-level bridge and a pedestrian ferry that runs in season. Ships can be up to 225.5 meters long and 23.77 meters wide.
Locks 4, 5 and 6 form a series of twinned flight locks, 1,249.7 m long with a 42.5 m rise; the Seaway describes three of the seven northern locks as twinned and contiguous. Crossings: 11 lift bridges, 3 tunnels, one high-level bridge and a seasonal pedestrian ferry.
The Seaway's vessel maximum is 225.5 m long, 23.77 m in the beam, with an 8.08 m draft and 35.5 m above the water, and channels are kept at least 8.2 m deep. The Canadian Encyclopedia lists cargoes such as iron ore, wheat, corn, soybeans, coal, iron, steel and cement.
- Twin flight locks
- Locks 4, 5 and 6
- Lift bridges
- 11
- Longest ship allowed
- 225.5 m
- Part of the Seaway since
- 1959
Beside the canal
This photo shows the canal's calm blue water.
On the far side there are big pale heaps, a dark heap, a yellow digger and trees.
This photo was taken on 6 October 2016 in Port Colborne, at the Lake Erie end of the canal. Calm water fills the front, and a long gray wall runs along the far bank, with big pale heaps, a dark heap, a yellow loader and a white curved building.
In St. Catharines, visitors can watch ships at Lock 3 from a viewing platform at the St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre.
The photographer (booledozer on Flickr) took it on 6 October 2016 in Port Colborne and titled it 'A berm beside the Welland Canal'. It shows calm canal water, a long wall along the far bank, pale heaps and a dark heap, a loader, a white curved building and trees.
The city of St. Catharines says Lock 3's ship schedule is managed by the Seaway corporation, ships are usually added no more than 24 hours ahead, and the canal closes for winter maintenance between the first week of January and mid-March.
Amazing facts
-
Three of the locks come in side-by-side pairs!
Locks 4, 5 and 6 are twinned flight locks that together lift ships 42.5 meters.
Locks 4, 5 and 6 form a series of twinned flight locks 1,249.7 m long with a rise of 42.5 m.
-
Water fills a lock in just a few minutes!
About 91 million liters of water fill a Seaway lock in just 7 to 10 minutes.
A Seaway lock fills with approximately 91 million liters in 7 to 10 minutes, by gravity alone.
-
Some bridges over the canal lift up for ships!
The canal is crossed by 11 lift bridges and 3 tunnels.
The canal is crossed by 11 lift bridges, 3 tunnels, one high-level bridge and a seasonal pedestrian ferry.
Words to know
- canal
- a waterway dug by people for boats and ships
- lock
- a walled section of a canal with gates, where water is let in or out to raise or lower a boat
- guard lock
- a lock at a canal's entrance that helps control the water level
- lift bridge
- a bridge whose deck rises to let tall ships pass underneath
- cargo
- goods carried by a ship, train or truck
- peninsula
- land almost surrounded by water
Discovery challenge
-
Which two lakes does the Welland Canal join?
Which two lakes does the Welland Canal connect?
The Welland Canal runs from Port Weller to Port Colborne, linking which two lakes?
- Lake Ontario and Lake Erie
- Lake Superior and Lake Huron
- Lake Victoria and Lake Malawi
Show the answer
Lake Ontario and Lake Erie
Lake Ontario and Lake Erie!
Lake Ontario and Lake Erie.
Lake Ontario (Port Weller) and Lake Erie (Port Colborne).
-
How many locks does the canal have?
How many locks does the Welland Canal have?
How many locks does the Welland Canal have in all, counting the guard lock?
- 8
- 47
- 2
Show the answer
8
Eight!
Eight: seven at the north end and one at Port Colborne.
Eight: seven lift locks and one guard lock.
-
Which big waterfall do ships go around?
Which waterfall does the canal let ships avoid?
Besides the turbulent Niagara River, which waterfall does the canal bypass?
- Niagara Falls
- Victoria Falls
- Angel Falls
Show the answer
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls!
Niagara Falls.
Niagara Falls.
-
When did the first Welland Canal open?
In which year did the first Welland Canal open?
In which year did the First Welland Canal open?
- 1829
- 1959
- 1700
Show the answer
1829
In 1829!
In 1829.
1829; the Fourth Canal followed in 1932.
-
How big is the height difference between the two lakes?
What height difference does the canal overcome between the two lakes?
What height difference between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario does the canal overcome?
- 99.4 meters
- 10 meters
- 500 meters
Show the answer
99.4 meters
99.4 meters!
99.4 meters.
99.4 m.
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Explain how a lock raises and lowers a ship.
- Describe why a canal was needed between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie.
- Put the four Welland canals in order on a timeline.
Recommended ages: 4 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- Why couldn't ships just sail up the Niagara River?
- Why might people build a new canal to replace an older one?
- What might be carried on a big ship through the canal?
Try at home or in class
- Float a small toy boat in a sink or tub, then pour in cups of water and watch the boat rise, like a ship in a lock.
- Find Lake Ontario, Lake Erie and Niagara Falls on a map and trace a ship's route between the lakes.
Key vocabulary: canal, lock, guard lock, lift bridge, cargo, peninsula
Where these facts come from
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- Welland Canal , The Canadian Encyclopedia (Historica Canada)
- Our Locks and Channels , Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System
- Facts & Figures , Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System
- St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre: Visiting Us , City of St. Catharines
- File:A berm beside the Welland Canal, in Port Colborne, 2016-10-06 -aa (29542083913).jpg , Wikimedia Commons
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file (public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA); see each media record)
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
Picture credits
- Photo: booledozer, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons · source