Mississippi River Lock 19, Keokuk

The Mississippi at Keokuk

This live webcam overlooks the Mississippi River at Keokuk, a historic river town in the southeastern corner of Iowa. The camera frames the broad channel where the great river is tamed by one of its most impressive engineering works.

Lock and Dam No. 19

At the heart of the view stands Lock and Dam No. 19, a key navigation structure on the Upper Mississippi. Barges, towboats and recreational craft lock through here as they travel the inland waterway between the Gulf of Mexico and the northern river ports.

The Keokuk Hydroelectric Plant

Beyond the lock rises the Keokuk Energy Center, a century-old run-of-river powerhouse that ranked among the largest hydroelectric plants in the world when it opened. Its long spillway stretches across the river toward the Illinois shore.

A Living River Crossroads

The scene captures the constant rhythm of commercial and leisure traffic on one of North America's most storied rivers, a fascinating window onto life along the Mississippi.