Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1907-06-14
DOWN AT CATAWsA FALLS.

1t would be a source Of much pleas
ure to The Enquirer IL 1t could give It's
readers a comprehensive idea Of the
tremendous developments completed
and in progress by the Southern Pow
er company at Great Catawba Falls.
1t was with this end in view that a
representative was sent there few
days ago; but with all the information
obtainable, and the representative had
only to ask to learn anything he wan
ted to know. there is no good reason
for hoping that any description which
can be written will give a satisfactory
idea Of the work that has been ac-
complished.
This same representative was in the
same vicinity about seventeen years
ago. On that occasion he made the
trip by rail to Richburg and thence
fifteen miles in q buggy, over coun-
try so rough as to emphasize its proba-
BILE inaccessibility forever. And the
scene of the Great Catawba Falls was
something calculated to inspire awe.
Few people In this part of the country,
who had never seen the cataract were
able to form any conception Of its wild
grandeur. There was plenty Of sug-
gestion of power; but on a basis Of the
existing scale Of other surroundings,
even the imagination did not seem to
picture the idea Of a dam across the
river In the first place 1t did not ap-
pear necessary and In the second place
many of our boldest engineers would
have been inclined to declare Ii impos-
sible.
The Great Catawba Falls as they
are called, are really a series OF cat
aracts formed as the river Is breaking
through the last belt Of foothills that
separate the broken country to the
north from the low lying fiat plains to
the south. This series Of cataracts
| Is about three miles in length, and the
water in it's mad course Of swirling
and tumbling from head down to foot,
makes the equivalent of a perpendicu-
| lar fall Of something like 130 feet. The
volume of water at this point Is some
thing tremendous too, and in several
respects these falls exceed anything OF
the kind in the southeast.
Rising out of the river at the head
of the falls, is a great hump of rock
known as Mountain Island. This Is
land Is about three quarters OF mile
wide and three miles long. There are
| in reality two cataracts, one on each
side of the river, and the stream Is sc
evenly divided that both are about
equal in volume and power. The cat
aracts commence at point just above
the island and end at a point just be-
| low. Within a few hundreds yards
after the divided steam reunites, II
takes up it's broad, deep course as
smoothly and as sluggishly over many
long stretches as through the compar-
latively level plateaus above.
Many Of our readers are aware that
during the first quarter Of the last
century, the South Carolina legisla-
ture spent hundreds Of thousands OF
dollars in the prosecution Of great
scheme to make the Catawba nav
igable from the ocean to the noun
tains, and before the undertaking fell
through most Of the obstacles at this
point were removed by canal around
| the Great Falls. The canal was a
great work for those days. 1t was
only about six miles long and twelve
or fourteen feet wide but it meant
almost as much for South Carolina as
the digging Of the Panama ditch today
means for the United States govern
ment. A series of great locks was con-
structed, near the lower end of the ca
nal, and few boats were gotten
through, but there was still a lot OF
work to be done at Landsford and 9TH
er shoals higher up, and for some
reason the scheme was abandoned.
| The Southern Power company has
made some use Of the states old
works: but not a great deal. The en-
gineering, 1t seems, was all right; bu'
the whole thing was on rather toe
modest basis for present purposes
Where q narrow channel was suffi-
cient for small freight boats, 1t re-
quired a river bed to carry the water
necessary to develop 10000 electrical
water power. The canal went entirely
hA oh hut c.
ent purposes 1t suited best to build q
mighty dam across one prong of the
river and turn the entire current into
the canal. That Is what has been ac-
complished. Standing now on top OF
this dam and looking over the course
along which the great cataract once
dashed there Is now to be seen only Q
long stretch Of jagged, water polished
rocks, with here and there pool o1
stagnating water that came over the
spillway during the last freshet. =,
| Following the course Of the canal
the water proceeds leisurely with only
enough fall to carry 1t along with
hardly a ripple until 1t reaches the
great bulkhead, a mile below. The
bulkhead is practically another dam
It Is fifty or sixty feet thick at the
base, and narrows up to about ten OF
twelve feet at the top. The length Is
$50 feet. It Is built much higher and
stronger than will probably ever be
necessary. There seems to be no rea-
sonable possibility that there can ever
be freshet so big as to flood past the
spillway of the dam referred to q
mile above. But 1t seems that moth
ing has been left to chance. The
great power house standing down In
| the tremendous gulch below the bulk
head, contains something like a mil
lion dollars worth Of machinery, and
If anything should happen to this pow
er house even now, there would De
distress in many cotton mill localities
Later on it would be much worse
Therefore no labor or expense thal
prudent foresight seemed to suggest
has been spared.
There was an implied promise In
the article published Tuesday, to the
effect that the power house would be
described later. 1t will be understood
however, that the description must
necessarily be very general. com.
plete technical description would fill
a large book, and that book would
have to be written by Mr.. Lee, the
chief engineer, or Mr.. Leland, his
able first assistant But to Deglr
with this power house is probably the
most expensive, substantial and dura-
BILE building of its size to be found In
South Carolina. 1t Is doubtful as to
whether the government Notifications
at Charleston or the buildings In the
navy yard represent more labor OF
expense or include more perfect ma
terials. There are no frills about 1t
1t Is as neat as a pin; but no effort al
ornamentation was made. The foun-
dation, which goes away down into
the earth, Is built Of crushed stone
and concrete. The walls are Of brick
the hardest obtainable, and each one
apparently selected with reference to
| high standard of perfection. The
roof is of tiles. made of reinforced
concrete. and there is no wood In the
building except the window frames
and supporting columns, even the
| floors being of reinforced concrete.
There are numerous braces Of iron In
the building; but not one that seems
to be superfluous.
The machinery Of course. starts
with the great water wheels. These
are outside-ten of them in a row.
The nearest approach to them Is In
long tunnel, down under the surface
Of the water. This tunnel runs from
one end Of the building to the other.
There Is water overhead and on the
t, fn aiOh taQn