The lock keepers cottage is at lock three or McLeaves lock on the Lagan tow path which runs along the Lagan river from Belfast to Lisburn. It is one of the few places along the Lagan canal where the lock, the lock keepers cottage and the stone bridge all remain.
In 1756/7 a canal was cut and a weir made from the Lagan river due to shallow rapids. Lock keepers had to be employed to maintain the locks and enable the boats to pass through them. They also had to look after the weir to maintain the correct water level, if the water was either too high or too low the boats couldn't pass. In flooding and other bad weather this was an all night affair moving between the lock and weir to keep the water levels down. The current cottage was not the original on the site, with the original being over the bridge and up the lane. It was a one storey high dwelling to keep with the Lagan Navigation Company's policies. It also came with a garden and a small amount of land, this was needed as a lock keepers wage was meager but could be supplemented by growing vegetables etc. The owner of the Belvoir Estate one Thomas Bateson decided to build a boundary wall which took the land from the lock keepers cottage so he came to an arrangement with the Lagan Navigation Company to rent the current cottage and land. This cottage is from the late 18th/ early 19th century and belonged to a local linen bleaching head Sir Richard Ferguson. William McLeave became the lock keeper in 1861 and the first to live in the rented cottage. It stayed as the lock keepers cottage until the close of the lock in 1958.
The cache is a micro sized camo container, nicely hidden away. Please take your time to enjoy the area with its natural beauty, wildlife and history. This cache can be done in a pleasant circular walk with Shaw's bridge GC5QXEJ and Ring fort at Clement Wilson Park GC5QXVJ.