U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

08/15/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 08/15/2022 13:51

Larry the Lock

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
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Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0001

DOWNLOAD THE FREE PDF BOOK HERE
SO YOU CAN PRINT THE PAGES FROM HOME!

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
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Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0003

Hi everyone, I am Larry the lock. My technical name is Allegheny River Lock and Dam 2 but all my friends call me Larry. I live in Pittsburgh, across from the neighborhoods of Sharpsburg, Aspinwall and Etna.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
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Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0004

I have an exciting job that few people know about. Some people think I help prevent floods. I am actually a giant elevator! Well, a giant water elevator. I was built where the Allegheny River has a significant drop in water levels, so I help boats and other watercrafts go from one water level to the other smoothly.

Typically, I lift and lower boats by 11 feet, depending on which way the river Traffic is going.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
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Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0005

Here's how I do it. First, boats go into my chamber. I either fill up or empty water out, depending on which way they are traveling. If a tugboat is going downstream, I open the valve near my front gate and slowly let water out. When I do this, the water in my chamber lowers, bringing the boat down.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0006

If a boat travels upstream, I open the valves near my back gate. I have two valves on this side, one in my wall and one on the ground. The gate valve functions the same way on both sides, but the ground valve lets water in through an underground pipe called a 'culvert.' The water from the culvert slowly fills my chamber, like a bathtub raising the boat until it can smoothly sail out.

This process to fill or empty my water takes about 20 minutes.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
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Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0007

The water that goes out of my chamber get released into a 'boil.' The boil causes a significant area of undercurrents below the dam. that can be very dangerous for someone to sail into. I use the water to fill my chamber from the pool that surrounds me. The pool is a large area of calm water upstream from me. My pool is about 7.8 miles long.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0008

Every day I see something different, But I see a lot of tugboats transporting barges, which are big, long, flat-bottomed boats filled with trade goods. Trade goods are things like coal, rocks and minerals. Barges can't move independently, so a tugboat has to help them.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0009

One tugboat can push up to 15 barges at a time. A single barge can hold the same amount of material as 58 big trucks.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0010

I also help recreational boats, ships and smaller watercraft such as kayaks. Sometimes even the Gateway Clipper comes through. In addition, people often use my pool for fishing and swimming near the shore.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0011

I don't do all this work by myself, though. Thankfully, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District manages me and has many great people working at my facility.

I have a lock master who is in charge of all the critical decisions. I have lock operators who help me when I have to raise or lower the water in my chamber. They are the ones who open my gates and make sure everyone stays safe on their boats. Sometimes when I need repairs, civil engineers from downtown and other parts of the country will come and fix me.

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0012

I need quite a bit of attention because of my age. I opened for use in 1934, almost 90 years ago!

Some neighboring locks were built in the early 1920s and we still get the job done!

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0013

Being a lock is fun. I help people safely navigate the river every day, so they can get from one place to another in a more eco- and cost-friendly way than driving. I hope everyone remembers to be safe on the water, so make sure you always stay out of my restricted zones and wear a lifejacket near the water!

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Erik Breedon)
SHARE IMAGE:
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0014

DOWNLOAD THE FREE PDF BOOK HERE
SO YOU CAN PRINT THE PAGES FROM HOME!

Larry the Lock
"Larry the Lock" is a children's book written and illustrated by Ashley Daugherty to illustrate the important work locks perform on the river within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. Daugherty has always had a love for art and reading. While pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Art degree in graphic design she had the chance to work as an intern at the Pittsburgh District. Daugherty wanted to make the mission of a lock more understandable, especially to children. Therefore, Larry the Lock was created. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District illustration by Ashley Daugherty)
SHARE IMAGE:
Photo By: Ashley Daugherty
VIRIN: 220815-A-WW751-0015