The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-07-11
GORHAM WATER POWER.
Scheme To Turn Flow Of the Presump
scot.
MIR. Browns Bid for Lighting streets-The
Story of the Gorhan Plant

MIR. Browns Bid for Lighting streets-The
Story of the Gorham Plant.
When Manager George W. Brown of
the Deering Electric Light company
stood up in Deering's city council meeting
Friday evening and invited the city
fathers to ride with him to North Gorham
the next day and look over the site of his
proposed new electric power plant.
he meant just what he said. 1t was
his intention to charter q barge and haul
to North Gorham as many of the council
members as could be piled on, but when
he made the rounds Saturday he found
he had selected an unfavorable day for
the trip, Saturday is busy day with the
most of the Deering city government
men and all he could muster were AL
dermen True and Dingley.
Ihese Two accompanied Mr.. Brown ON
a delightful carriage drive to the pict-
uresque little village beside the PTesump-
scot where for about four years 1900 horse
power has been daily going to waste.
The story of the Indurated Fibre COM
pany's abandonment of the plant which
1t operated at North Gorham - OF Ii
northern Cumberland county. The com
pnny manufactured water pals, tubs and
other articles of wood plup and Its facto-
ry and all its appurtenances represented
an outlay of about $3.50, 600. The Cor
ham plant was only branch OF the COM
pany's factory at Lockport. -Four years
ago the Lockport buildings were burned
and in rebuilding them the owners deoid-
ed to make them large enough to allow
a concentration of all the business in one
plant.
When the North Gorham factory was
abandoned q crew of masons was just
completing stone foundation for a new
they were using still stands there today
beside the wall The gates at the dam
were shut down. all the company's help
discharged, the manufactured product
on hand was shipped to Lockport, the
Keys turned in the doors, and the village
Immediately began to relapse into the
condition of painful quietness that
reigned before the pulp mill was built.
In addition to the factory and its ex-
tensive dams and sluices the company
owned numerous houses and most of the
land ON each side of the river for several
hundred yards above and below the
bridge.
MI. Peterson of the Indurated Fibre
company having failed to secure from the
legislature a charter that would permit
his corporation to supply the cities Of
Portland, Deering and Westbrook with
electricity for lighting and power the
company sold out to the Sebago Power
company.
The latter corporation has given MIR.
George W. Brown lease of the entire
property with the understanding that he
shall improve it any way he sees fit, the
Sebago company to pay him for his ip-
provemeuts whenever 1t gets ready to
manage the property itself and inaugurate
Its big scheme of building a canal and
putting in power plant 1900 feet below
the dam.
The Cumberland Illuminating compa-
ny, corporation chartered in 1887 Is at
the bottom of the scheme of putting in a
power house at North Gorham, stretching
its wires to Westbrook and Deering and
selling electric light to those cities. Mir.
Browns proposition to furnish Deering
2T3 lights of 25 candle power at $14. So per
light was made in behalf of this compa-
ny. A crew is at work there now repair
ing the old bulkhead, building d new pen
stock and framing the timbers for the
power house.
"What If you shouldn't happen to get,
the Deering contract" suggested ono of
the Aldermen who>was locking over the
site Saturday afternoon.
We have begun the improvements and
we intend to complete them," was Mr.
Browns reply "Its too late to turn
back now. We shall erect power house
36x46 feet with eight wheels and Ca
pacity of 700 horse power, and expect to
have an electric lighting plant in and
our lines strung to Deering before October
/. We believe that the city of Deering
will improve the opportunity to make SO
great q saving in its cost of street light
ing, but if we should not get the Deering
contract 1t will lot hinder the carrying
out of our plans"
The old wooden building nearest the
bridge is being torn down. The power
house will be erected on the foundation
which was laid in anticipation OF an
increase of the fibre plant four years ago.
Nobody could question the projectors
claim about the immensely of the water
power that is now running to waste at
North Gorham. There is fall of % feet
at the old dam, enough to easily furnish
7b0 horse power for the running of the 9y-
namos. by putting flash boards on the
dam the fall can be increased to 20 feet
and the horse power to 900.
When the time Is ripe for such an IN
dertaking the Sebago Power company
will construct @ canal, 1900 feet In length,
from the old dam across the road through
the fields and down the slope Of the hill
to point not far below the Island
Falls. The ezcavating, filling, carting of
stone and dirt and other operations con-
nected with the building of the canal
will be performed by electricity generated
in the power house now in process of
erection. The engineers have figured
that fall of 62 feet can be obtained by
IL cans Of this canal
The Deering aldermen's request that
the company Mr.. Brown represents file
bond guaranteeing fulflllment of the
contract within the specified time will
BIS complied with this week.
SHOULD BE EDUCATED.
Portland. Oregon, July 9-Ihe national