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On This Day: First Hydroelectric Plant Opens
September 30, 2009 02:00 AM
by
Caleb March
On Sept. 30, 1882, the world’s first hydroelectric power plant began operation in Wisconsin, producing enough energy to supply three buildings.
Appleton Edison Light Company
Thomas Edison opened the world’s first commercial power plant in New York City on Sept. 4, 1882. Later that month, H.J. Rogers’s hydroelectric plant began operations halfway across the country in Appleton, Wis.
The Vulcan Street Plant, as it was first known, was built on the Fox River using an Edison-invented type “K” dynamo generator. The generator produced approximately 12.5 kilowatts of electricity, enough to power H.J. Rogers’s home and his two paper mills.
When Rogers, president of the Appleton Paper & Pulp Company, heard about Thomas Edison’s plans for a steam power plant in New York, he gathered local support to build a similar plant in Appleton, using hydroelectric power instead of steam. Since his paper mills were already located next to the Fox River, he had the perfect opportunity for harnessing hydroelectric power.
After a failed opening on Sept. 27, Rogers succeeded in opening the station three days later, to the amazement of the local community.
The plant, run by the Appleton Edison Light Company under Rogers’s supervision, experienced many problems during the first years of operation. The biggest problem was that the electricity could not be regulated, putting the electrical output of the generator at the mercy of the river’s intensity. Other issues arose because there had not yet been invented a means of measuring the electricity used by individuals; people who wanted to buy electricity from Rogers’s plant had to pay a flat monthly rate.
In 1886, Appleton Edison Light Company also began providing power for the first electric streetcar system in Appleton.
The Vulcan Street Plant, as it was first known, was built on the Fox River using an Edison-invented type “K” dynamo generator. The generator produced approximately 12.5 kilowatts of electricity, enough to power H.J. Rogers’s home and his two paper mills.
When Rogers, president of the Appleton Paper & Pulp Company, heard about Thomas Edison’s plans for a steam power plant in New York, he gathered local support to build a similar plant in Appleton, using hydroelectric power instead of steam. Since his paper mills were already located next to the Fox River, he had the perfect opportunity for harnessing hydroelectric power.
After a failed opening on Sept. 27, Rogers succeeded in opening the station three days later, to the amazement of the local community.
The plant, run by the Appleton Edison Light Company under Rogers’s supervision, experienced many problems during the first years of operation. The biggest problem was that the electricity could not be regulated, putting the electrical output of the generator at the mercy of the river’s intensity. Other issues arose because there had not yet been invented a means of measuring the electricity used by individuals; people who wanted to buy electricity from Rogers’s plant had to pay a flat monthly rate.
In 1886, Appleton Edison Light Company also began providing power for the first electric streetcar system in Appleton.
Later Developments: The Progress of Hydroelectric Power
Nikola Tesla was the first person to use a hydroelectric power plant to distribute power on a wide scale. In 1896, Tesla’s work at the Niagara Falls power plant in New York enabled the plant to send electricity to Buffalo, N.Y., a distance of about 26 miles.
By the early 1900s, more than 40 percent of electricity in the United States was produced by hydroelectric power, and in the 1940s, hydroelectricity accounted for about a third of the country’s electricity supply.
In 1902, Congress passed the Reclamation Act to develop irrigation and water supplies in areas of the country where water shortages were creating economic and health problems. During the Depression, the Reclamation Act played an important role in revitalizing the American economy.
Hydroelectric power plants were built at the Hoover Dam on the Arizona-Nevada border, the Grand Coulee Dam in Washington, and the Central Valley Project in California. American mobilization for World War II also increased the demand for hydroelectric power, and spawned many government-funded projects.
Today, about 7 percent of electricity in the United States is hydroelectric, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
By the early 1900s, more than 40 percent of electricity in the United States was produced by hydroelectric power, and in the 1940s, hydroelectricity accounted for about a third of the country’s electricity supply.
In 1902, Congress passed the Reclamation Act to develop irrigation and water supplies in areas of the country where water shortages were creating economic and health problems. During the Depression, the Reclamation Act played an important role in revitalizing the American economy.
Hydroelectric power plants were built at the Hoover Dam on the Arizona-Nevada border, the Grand Coulee Dam in Washington, and the Central Valley Project in California. American mobilization for World War II also increased the demand for hydroelectric power, and spawned many government-funded projects.
Today, about 7 percent of electricity in the United States is hydroelectric, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Related Topic: Hydroelectric power around the world
The Itaipu Dam, a joint project between Brazil and Paraguay, is one of the largest hydroelectric power plants in the world. Completed in 1991, the five-mile-long dam produced 25 percent of the electric supply in Brazil and 78 percent in Paraguay by 1995.
The controversial Three Gorges Dam in China remains the world’s largest dam structure. Once it reaches full capacity in 2009, it is expected to produce as much energy as 15 nuclear power plants. Built on the Yangtze River in central China, the dam is over 600 feet tall and houses 26 generators.
The controversial Three Gorges Dam in China remains the world’s largest dam structure. Once it reaches full capacity in 2009, it is expected to produce as much energy as 15 nuclear power plants. Built on the Yangtze River in central China, the dam is over 600 feet tall and houses 26 generators.
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