In 1820, construction of the canal, which was designed by Robert Mills, began using slave labor and skilled laborers from the northern states under the supervision of Robert Leckie. The Landsford Canal was about 2 miles long, twelve (12) feet wide, and ten (10) feet deep. It had four lifting locks and one guard lock for the thirty-two (32) feet of descent along its length.

About a year after completion, in 1824, one of the locks collapsed due to an inferior foundation. Canal traffic, which had never been much, apparently ceased by 1840. It was the northernmost in a series of four canals built on the Catawba and Wateree rivers to provide a direct water route between the Upcountry and the towns on the fall line. It is located on the Catawba River in Chester County, and was named for an early settler, Thomas Land, who onwed the land with a ford across the Catawba River.

There was a rock dam in the river by the guard lock, six masonry culverts, two bridges (masonry and masonry/wood), and a masonry lockkeeper's house. In addition, an existing mill and millrace were incorporated into the canal near its midpoint. The contractor was Robert Leckie, later Superintendent of Masonry on the C&O Canal, and the Landsford Canal's total cost was $130,000.

As one of the only canals in South Carolina remaining fairly undisturbed, all five locks are still standing and the stonework is in good condition. Though the lower end has been badly washed out by seasonal flooding, the earthen walls of the upper two-thirds of the canal stand prominently. The entire canal is now under the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism.

The Landsford Canal is listed in the Nationa Register - December 3, 1969.