Barge Canal (Florida)

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The Merritt Island Barge Canal provides an east-to-west link between the Banana River Lagoon and Indian River Lagoon across northern Merritt Island, Florida. It is located 15 miles south of Titusville, Florida. The canal is 12 feet deep and has entrances to other water systems including Syke's Creek and various marinas. The canal links Port Canaveral along the Atlantic Ocean to the Intracoastal Waterway running down the center of the Indian River Lagoon. The canal was constructed to allow the transport of crude oil by barge to the two power plants south of Titusville, Florida. And until the 1960s when the first bridge was built, had cut off North Merritt Island from the southern half, partially causing the more rural character of the northern half to remain long into the 1980s.