A traffic sign showing the right direction towards Jakokoski canal.
Picture: Merja Räikkönen 1986.
A map of Jakokoski museum area.
Photo: Helena Kinnunen 1989.
Canal area and summer theatre.
Picture: Merja Räikkönen 1986.
Building of the lock
Building of the canal was initiated in June 1877 in Jakokoski. Tools and materials were transported by ships from the City of Joensuu (www.joensuu.fi). When the dam was ready, digging began and the walls of the canal were covered with stones. A basin was built for meeting ships.
Building of the lock started in 1878. The base of the lock was quarried into rock but other parts of the lock were built of wood. After the canal keepers house and other buildings were ready, the canal was opened on the 1st of October 1878.
In 1907, the wooden lock was replaced by a lock made of stone.
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A traffic sign showing the right direction towards Jakokoski canal. | A map of Jakokoski museum area. | Canal area and summer theatre. |
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Canal area and tug boat s/s Utra. | Lock towards downstream. | Canal keepers house is nowadays a museum. |
© Pictures by Riitta Kankkunen 1991
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Floating steam machine model 1917 generated electricity for the canal building site. | Steamship S/S Taimi III in the Jakokoski lock. | M/S Vinkeri in the Jakokoski lock. |
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Jakokoski lock and lock gate towards upstream. The white construction above the lock is a bridge to the local summer theatre. | The stone walls of the canal in summer 1995. Attention! It is very dangerous to swim in the canal because of the stream! This picture was taken under proper surveillance. | Water is brownish but clean. |
Canal dimensions
Total length | Elevation | Number of locks | Length of lock | Breadth of lock | Depth of lock |
537 m | ? m | 1 | 35,6 m | 7,7 m | 2,1 m |
Jakoskoski canal today
The stone walls of the canal were renovated in summer 2003. Jakokoski canal is a part of the Finnish Canal Museum, with this webpage.
Unfortunately the site is in Finnish only. The photos are great so the link is worth opening. Do have a look at www.jakokoski.net and www.kontiolahti.fi as well.
The area has a permanent exhibition (open in summer) and a lot of interesting machines and equipment relating to canal building and maintenance, for example an old tug boat, steam machines, generators, maps, pictures of all Pielisjoki canals, etc. An excellent exhibition in the canal keepers house shows how the canal keeper and his family lived in the 19th and 20th centuries. All things are original. If you are going to visit only one of the old Pielisjoki canals, choose Jakokoski. It is easy to find and there is a lot to see.
Riitta Kankkunen © 2005
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