She's one of thousands of people who work on the Mississippi River to keep it safe for boats traveling along its length.
Why did you start working on the river?
I grew up around the La Crosse area in Wisconsin. I love anything outdoors. My dad used to take me to Lock and Dam 7. We'd fish off the wall there.
One summer after I graduated from college, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was looking for clerks. I worked that summer as a clerk at Lock and Dam 7 in La Crescent, Minnesota. I started working year-round as a clerk in 1982.
In 1989, the Corps came out with a program to get more women working on the lock. I applied. I had to complete two years working at a lock and dam. If I didn't care for it, I could get my clerk job back.
I absolutely loved it! It was basically outdoor work, putting boats through the lock. I worked a swing shift-one week I worked during the day, the next week I worked 4 p.m. to midnight, and the week after that I worked midnight to dawn. That was hard, but I made it through.
I became an operator on the locks and dams. I did that for a few years. Then I worked as a head operator before I became lockmaster at Lock and Dam 6 in Trempealeau, Wisconsin, in December 2011. I am one of three women lockmasters in the St. Paul district.
What does a lockmaster do?
A lockmaster is in charge of a site on river. There are 29 locks and dams between St. Paul and St. Louis. Each one has a lockmaster. Every morning, Water Management in St. Paul sends orders about whether we should open the dam gates or close the dam gates or just stay the same, to keep the water at the right level. My main job is to make sure everything is running smoothly and to ensure we have enough people on site to get boats through the lock safely.
Can you explain the lock and dam system?
Esta historia es de la edición April 2023 de Cobblestone American History Magazine for Kids.
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Esta historia es de la edición April 2023 de Cobblestone American History Magazine for Kids.
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