[2] The state park spans five counties (Rock Island, Bureau, Henry, Lee and Whiteside) and is 104.5 miles (168.2 km) long.

To build the canal would mean that local citizens would have to gain the support of their state and other beneficial government officials (Yeater 2).

If this happened, the St. Lawrence River and Welland Canal would be closed to U.S. ships, and people from the Great Lakes area could not compete in eastern markets.

[citation needed] The United States Senate appointed a committee to study the value of Low's proposal.

In 1881, four hundred representatives of commercial, city, and farmers associations from seven states met in Davenport, Iowa, to start a similar group called the Hennepin Canal Commission.

The eastern half of all three routes was the same; the canal would begin at the Illinois River about 1.75 miles (2.8 km) above Hennepin.

In 1886, the United States Congress appointed a Board of Engineers to scrutinize the routes and investigate the effects the canal would have on national commerce.

The board reported that benefits would exceed costs, and they suggested that the Marais d’Osier route be selected.

Fulton and Albany claimed that their cities were an ideal place for the canal, but Rock Island had a larger population and flourishing river port, so it was more convincing to construct at that location (Bastian 138).

The initial suggestion was to place the feeder in Dixon, Illinois, approximately 13 miles (21 km) to the northeast.

The citizens of Rock Falls and neighboring Sterling were informed that the War Department would make a decision of the length, cost, and route.

Johnson, minority leader of legislature, and C. L. Sheldon went to Washington, D.C., to discuss the matter with Honorable Redfield Potter, Secretary of War.

When they returned, a survey was made that showed that the tapping of the river at Rock Falls would be 11 miles (18 km) shorter and cheaper than tapping at Dixon would be; government officials checked figures, and the decision was made to build at Rock Falls (Hennepin Canal Feeder).

Because concrete cost fifty percent less than cut stone masonry, a five-foot width increase would be added to plans (Yeater 5).

Workers discovered 3 miles (4.8 km) of peat bog; therefore, the bed of the canal was lined with clay to prevent water loss.

This section was the most difficult because the canal ascends 196 feet (60 m) from the sea level, thus requiring 21 locks to regulate the water.

On December 6, 1906, the Sterling Hydraulic Company agreed on the original plan to construct the dam at the foot of Tenth Avenue, Rock Falls (Hennepin Canal Feeder).

The canal was not completely filled, so each section's water had to be moved with the locks for the boat to pass.

As a result, the first people the sailors found were asked to come aboard to make the ship sink slightly (Yeater 6).

Miss Grace Wheeler, the daughter of the chief engineer, opened the gates for the first time (Hennepin Canal Feeder).

A telephone system was built by the Corps of Engineers so that a lockman could be advised in advance when a boat was coming through the locks.

The canal was not only a route to transport coal, salt, grain, gravel, iron, steel, and many other crops and minerals, but it was a place for recreation as well.

The Corps of Engineers employed fifty men full-time, year-round to operate and maintain the canal.

Some of their tasks included patrolling banks, repairing breaks, operating the locks, servicing phone systems, etc.

In 1920, Ray Mechling and Fred Wolf of Rock Falls began a barge line.

The canal was intended to connect the Upper Mississippi River Valley with the Atlantic Ocean; however, it did not (Yeater 12).

Consequently, on April 7, 1948, the Corps of Engineers issued a “navigation notice” that put the canal on a limited-service basis.

Legislators in Washington, D.C., and in Springfield were getting innumerable letters and petitions from Illinois citizens and conservationists.

On August 1, 1970, full ownership was given to the state of Illinois to use the waterway as a place for recreations under the jurisdiction of the Department of Conservation.

Today, canal is managed by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and continues to be used for recreational purposes.