The Ketchikan miner., 1908-08-29
WORK IS PROGRESSING RAPIDLY
Plant of the New England Fish Company When Completed Will Be the Largest on the Coast

It is very doubtful if any consider able number of people. even among those who have material interests and are doing business here, have arrived at full appreciation of the value and importance to Ketchikan of the very large business industry which is soon to be inaugurated and put into practi- cal operation by the New England Fish Company. As is well known, this company has for years maintained it's Pacific Coast headquarters at Van- couver, B. C., from which place it has supplied it's enormous eastern trade with fresh halibut shipped over the Canadian Pacific line. That this big concern is soon to change its base of operations from Vancouver to ketchikan is DO longer matter of conjecture is proved by the fact that it is now engaged in the er erection and preparing for the installation of she largest and most complete cold storage and fish freezing plant on the whole Pacific coast. This plant when com plete, together with its power house and equipment, will cost upwards of soO0. eco, and there will be very few. if any. institutions of the kind in the United States either as large or as thoroughly up-to-date.
 Work on this plant, which was con- menced some two months ago, is still in progress and being pushed with as much rapidity as is consistent with a due regard for substantial construc- tiun, durability and business economy. The main plant, which will consi ist of eleven large buildings, ,-ono of them, .he freezing and cold storage plant, of ground dimensions nearly loo feet square and three stories in height is now nearly ready for the foundations, while the work of framing the timbers for the superstructure is in progress. Tn addition to these buildings there will be somewhere from fifty to one hundred cottages for the accommoda- tion of employees. together with the power plant. which last will be located at Georges Inlet. at a point where the outlet of a lake situated about three quarters of mile distant and lying at an elevation of three hundred and fifty feet above sea level, drops into salt water. This plant will be operated by water taken by a pipe line from the lake, which it will tap at depth of fifteen feet below the surface. and about three thouand feet in length to the power house, and in which will be placed three phase system of two generators, each capable of developing 1.O00 borse power. The power will be delivered to the main plant for refr gerating purposes aud
 mechanical use, over transmission line little less than five miles long. the right of way of which has been cleared aud the supports constructed.
 It is impossible to give aD adequate description of the plant without the aid of an engrsver, and Tie Miner must content itself with the simple statement that the fish freezing rooms will be four in number, with freez- ing capacity of lO9 tons of fish: The temperature of these four rooms will be maintained at ten degrees below zero. while that of the six fish storage rooms. with capacity of l, oO0 tons milI be kept at ten degrees above zero. The power for the refrigerat- ing machines will be furnished by two 150 b. D. electric motors, either one having sufficient power to drive both
 machines: all the motors of the plant will be the three phase, oe eyci7, iO volt induction motors ID conjunction
 with the plant there will be two re- frigeratiDg machines, each with ca
 pacity of sixty-fye tons, with con- densess of the double pipe type; also
 an ice making plant oi twenty tons daily capacity, which can readily be increased to thirty tons. The ice stor- age room will haze capacity of sev- enty=lve tons of ice. The coils in the
 Ash freezing rooms will ali he electric
 welded and made of extra heavy pipe. while that in the storage rooms will be two-inch fuli weight wrought iron,