Originally called "Rockport" or "Rockland Flats", Dallesport was the site of the first ferry crossing in the area, beginning in 1854. Rockland Flats was the original seat of Clickitat County (the name of the county was spelled with a "C" until an official name change in 1869), and remained so until 1878. Riverboat traffic moved up and down the river, but could not pass the falls at the Dalles and Celilo Falls. Portage was originally via a wagon road circumventing the falls. The Oregon Portage Railroad allowed passage of goods and travelers by rail beginning in 1863, but shippers chafed at the monopoly. In 1905, Congress approved an canal with locks on the north shore to bypass the falls. The Dalles-Celilo Canal opened May 5, 1915. The canal incorporated five locks with a total lift. The canal remained in use until it was flooded by the Dalles Dam in 1957.
Originally called "Rockport" or "Rockland Flats", Dallesport was the site of the first ferry crossing in the area, beginning in 1854. Rockland Flats was the original seat of Clickitat County (the name of the county was spelled with a "C" until an official name change in 1869), and remained so until 1878. Riverboat traffic moved up and down the river but could not pass the falls at the Dalles and Celilo Falls. Portage was originally via a wagon road circumventing the falls. The Oregon Portage Railroad allowed passage of goods and travelers by rail beginning in 1863, but shippers chafed at the monopoly. In 1905, Congress approved an canal with locks on the north shore to bypass the falls. The Dalles-Celilo Canal opened May 5 1915. The canal incorporated five locks with a total lift The canal remained in use until it was flooded by the Dalles Dam in 1957.