Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1907-09-19
BIG ELECTRIC ENTERPRISE.
Plant Being Built at Sharon TO Furn-
ish Power for Stafford Mines.

ster dam across White river IN the tow
OF sharon, This enterprise and all that
pertains thereto will be the work of the
Sharon Power company, corporation
recently organized under the laws OF
Vermont, with capital stock of $50, 0ao.
Its president is August Hecksher OF New
York city and financially interested In
the Vermont Copper company. James
W. Tyson OF STAFFORD, familiarity
known in Vermont copper mining in
terests, is the resident manager. The site
LOT the proposed dam is about one and a
half miles below the Sharon postotfiee
and few hundred feet up the river
from the solomon Downer house. Local
~, the site is known as the foot OF the
"Sand hill.n At this point the river
flow contracts TO width OF some 800
feet and is the elimination OF fall that
permits the construction OF dam Of
Itwenty-three feet head and the devel-
opment OF 900 horsepower, II is, in
fact, one of the best OF the many unde-
veloped privileges along White river all
the way from its source to its mouth and
the utilization of which would make of
Vermont great industrial or manu-
featuring state.
The selection OF the accepted site OF the
dam was only after many and compre-
hensive surveys, each taking into con-
sideration the securing, not alone OF the
greatest head or fall, but a site where
would result the minimum damage to
abutting property. As ii is, some four
teen or fifteen estates and parcels OF
realty will be, to a greater or less extent,
affected by the building of the dam. All
these have been bought by the Sharon
Power company. But not all OF these
several pieces OF real estate will be sub
merged or ruined by the flow caused by
the completed dam, yet as the extent of
the overflow could not be determined to
eNactness the company in every instance
gave the abuttor the benefit of the doubt
and paid the asking price. From first
to last, in all the realty transactions,
there was not threat TO resort TO the
courts, and in practically all cases there
was no attempt at extortion on the part
of an sbuttor.
OF the complete estates bought by the
power company, the first going down
the river is that OF Mrs. Ella Dunbar; the
second, John Fales, and third, that Of
the late Harrison Thurston. Parcels of
realty sold include those owned by Fred
erick Wright, William Heath, William
Flower, Charles Brown, Ezra Wood of
West Hartford, Almon Reynolds and Ir-
win Reynolds. In addition to these. the
selectmen of Sharon sold the old town
cemetery just below the present town
dam. For this transfer the power COM
pany bought three acres adjoining Pine
Tree cemetery and decided the same to the
cemetery association and besides Mr..
Hecksher gave the association as a free
gift the sum of 800. The removal of the
bodies from the old to the new cemetery
is now in progress. 1t was in the old
cemetery, as is generally believed, that
was buried that heroine of the Royalton
raid and massacre, Mrs. Hendee, later
Mrs. Mosher.
Without the delay of day after the re-
cording of the deeds, work on the dam
was begun. The contract for its con-
struction was awarded to Westinghous
Church, Kerr & Co. of New York. The
plans call for concrete dam, some 300
feet long and some % feet at its base.
The power house will be erected on the
right or railroad bank of the river and on
this side of the river will be built in all
likelihood any future manufacturing
buildings of the company, as the company
has bought the vacant land lying be-
tween the river and railroad and extend
ing for quarter Of mile or more down
the river side. This vacant land is espe-
cially suitable for almost any kind of
manufacturing structures and should
there come such condition as the ex-
haustion of the copper mines, then the
dam and its power could be utilized for
other purposes than mining, without the
loss of any portion of the proposed plant,
except the wires for the transmission of
the electric power
Already there have been erected num-
erous cabins for the use of the employees
hired on the work. Besides, engines,
boilers and furnaces are in full operation
and huge derricks erected. In fact, Shar-
on has new village and busy, bustling
place it is, with its men and horses, its
engines, its spur track from the main line
OF the Central Vermont road, and all
those accessories essential for the expedi-
tious carrying on of the undertaking.
The flow back of the river that the new
dam will cause is estimated at three full
miles and it is quite safe to say four. It
is said that the flow will at least touch
the top of the present dam near the vii
lage proper. The flow will necessitate
the raising of the highway that follows
the left bank of the river, for distance
from near the present dam to near the
Harrison Thurston place. The expense of
this work will be wholly met by the
power company. e--n..-.,-.-a -s--.
For the transmission of the electric
power from Sharon to the mines in STRAIT
ford the present plans comprehend line
OF wires across country and keeping en-
tirely from the highway. 1t is expected
that the line will extend from near e. P.
Farnsworth's, formerly the James Quinn
by place, in as straight a course as prac-
ticable to the mines and smelling works.
As to how long a time will be re-
CURED to complete the dam and power
plant, all is conjecture, but there are re-
ports that it will consume the better part
of year. That the location of the dam
and power plant in Sharon will add ma
terially to its list of taxable property is of
course certain, but how much the board
OF listers for 1908 will say, no one can as
yet tell. However, the concensus of
opinion in the town is that the amount to
be assessed is probable to yield at least
$500 annually.
Sharon ia also IN have itc ctraa+, - -