Lonely at the edge

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

The Jefferson County Waterway and Navigation District
gatemasters' homes sit on either side of the main lock separating freshwater (foreground) from saltwater (background) at the Navigational Lock and Saltwater Barrier Facility near Port Arthur on Thursday, March 23, 2006. The locks work as a barrier and allow small ships and boats to travel safely between the waterways.


Gatemaster Merle Peckenpaugh, 62, resides at the Navigational Lock and Saltwater Barrier Facility near Port Arthur. He and the assistant gatemaster are on call at all times of the day and night. Both have raised families at the remote location.


Fat Jack, a shrimp boat, pulls toward the lock facility near Port Arthur. A shrimp boat repair facility is located on the freshwater side of the lock.


Assistant gatemaster Juan Booty, 61, operates the lock system at the Navigational Lock and Saltwater Barrier Facility near Port Arthur. As boats enter the lock, gates are closed to keep water current pressure stable enough for the boats to exit the lock.


The Jefferson County Waterway and Navigation District lock is opened to allow a shrimp boat to enter the freshwater of Johnson Bayou near Port Arthur. The 20-foot deep gates work as a saltwater barrier and allow small ships and boats to travel safely between the waterways.


The Fat Jack moves into Johnson Bayou at the Navigational Lock and Saltwater Barrier Facility near Port Arthur. Gatemasters of the Jefferson County Waterway and Navigation District can operate the lock from inside the operation facility or with an external station.

Please read "Keepers of the barrier" by F.A. Krift.