The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-10-18
second ono is Now Being Built Six
Miles Down the River at an
Estimated Cost Of
s1,25o0oo.
CURTIS DESCRIBES IT
St. Anthcny's Falls Yield 10000 Horse
Power by Perpendicular Wa
ter Fall Of es
Feet.

fne late VIM. e. Curtis wrote the
following story Of the water power
dams at Minneapolis, shortly before
his death, the same appearing Sun
day in the Chicago RecordHerald:
It has always been an amiable fic-
ton that the Mississippi river is nav
igable as far as Minneapolis and large
sums Of money have been appropria-
ted by congress for its Improvement
on that basis. But, with the excep-
ton of an occasional small excursion
steamer or a barge laden with build
Ing material or some other heavy car
go, the waters above the dam have
never been burdened with commerce.
"A second dam now being built about
six miles below the city at a narrow
place in the gorge at an estimated
cost Of s1,250,000, is expected to raise
the level of the water nine feet as far
as Minneapolis and incidentally furn-
ish $4,000 horse power for the benefit
of the Twin Cities where 1t is very
much needed.
st. Anthony's Falls are 1900 miles
from the mouth of the Mississippi
Biologists say that the falls have been
travelling up stream for ages and that
5000 years ago they were where Fort
Smelling now stands, eight miles from
their present position, but do not
suppose that any stream or any body
OF water unless 1t be the Connecticut
or the Merrimac rivers has ever been
more useful to mankind or has pro-
duced more of value to the wealth OF
the world. Primarily, the city Of Min
neapolis owes its wealth and It's fame
to st. Anthony's Falls. Caleb C. Dorr,
who is still living at Minneapolis, was
one of the first to recognize the pos
sibilities of the situation and helped
to build the first private sawmill as
he helped to build the first frame
house on the site of the city, but the
little group of Maine lumbermen who
were first attracted here by this ire
nendous water power scarcely dream
cd of the wealth and the commerce
that would be developed.
st. Anthony's Falls yield 10000
$1,000 Pc"0A, IS applied TO the
wheels OF the -four mills and the saws
that cut the logs into lumber. The
perpendicular fall of the water Is six
ty-eight feet and its force is utilized
by means of canals and series of
sluices on both sides, which convey
the water to the various mills.
In 1858 the destruction OF the ledge
forming the falls was threatened. 1t
was strengthened by series of dams,
retaining walls and wooden apron
at cost OF approximately 5000. 900,
the United States government con-
tributing s550,000 and the citizens of
Minneapolis s334,O00. This work has
protected the base and walls until this
time, although there is still some anx.
iety because OF the soft and plant
character Of the rock. This contribu-
ton Is valuable also as precedent
for what the government is now doing
further down the river.
A lower dam owned by the st. An
thony Falls Water Power Company.
and built in 1867. is approximately
1900 feet long with twenty feet head
of water. 1t cost about 100000 and
furnishes about 10000 horse power for
the operation of the street railways of
the Twin Cities. The alternating cleo.
trio current transmitted to st. Paul
is generated at 3,450 volts, raised to
1900 volts by means of step-up trans
formers, then lowered to 3,450 volts
pressure by means of step-down trans
formers, converted into direct currents
at 500 volts pressure by means of ro-
tary converters, and then passes to the
feeder lines on the streets and finally
is utilized to propel the cars on 375
miles of railway. This is the only
large street railway system In the
world which makes such use of water
power. have quoted the technical
description because am told that 1t