El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-07-30
Harnesses Great Rive
KeOkuk Dam, Across the Mississippi,
Is the Greatest Water Power
Project on Earth.
- By Frederic J. Haskfn --


I 0- By Frederic }. HasISiR --
w TASHINGTON. D. C., July 30
! NJ The Father of Waters" the
incompatible Mississippi. has
| been set to do the tasks of men A
dam has been thrown athwart its
mighty flood and its power, turned
into electricity, is now running the
street cars and the industrial motors
of st. Louis, while other cities soon
! will be connected also
The Keokuk dam is the dominating
feature Of the biggest water power
plant ever constructed in this or any
other country. 1t will take rank as
! an engineering feat but second to the
! Panama canal, and In the whole wide
/ range of the hydro electric world, will
stand without a peer.
The dam prODer, the actual dam
I across the river from KeOkuk, in Iowa,
to Hamilton, in Illinois, is almost
mile IN length, but with the power
I house and sea wall and ice barrier, it
4 forms a solid mOnOlith of concrete
two and half miles long.
Rapids Always Troublesome.
The dam is built at the Des Moines
| rapids in the Mississippi, connecting
/ Iowa and Illinois, but within hailing
! distance of Missouri These rapids
/ from the earliest days of steambOaUng,
( have formed an obstruction to navi-
( cation that has given the government
no little trouble
Nearly a century ago it was pro-
: posed to blast out a deep channel
! through the hard rock bottom of the
| rapids. and work was actually begun,
/ only to be abandoned when the hepe-
! 1essness of the task became apparent
/ Then a canal, narrow and with small
| locks, was built and continued in oDer-
I alton until this dam was built. As
I part OF the contract with the govern
ment- Congress stipulated when the
/ dam was authorized that the company
should construct and maintain a ship
! canal with proper locks and a dry
/ dock. This has been done. and the lock
| and dry dock viii be operated with
power developed at the dam, working
/ saving to the government of ap-
/ pFOximately $40, 600 a year, not to speak
/ OF the actual Improvement of the con-
] ditiOns Of navigation
| Cost S2O,OOO,OOO.
| When the work is all completed, in
| Guiding the transmission lines that
/ will deliver the power to cities within
| a radius of $50 miles, the power plant
/ VIII nave cost approximately 100000
/ and will be capable Of developing over
/ 100000 horse power. To dam the Mis-
I is1ssippi was an undertaking requir-
/ ing such great engineering skin and
so much capital that u years ago,
when the grant of authority was given
/ BY congress, no one insisted upon the
| governments retaining the power OF
/ regulating rates charged for power,
\ but it is apparent that the government
] will be greatly benefited by the di-
4 rect aid Of navigation and the free
| operation Of much better locks than
/ those that formerly cost $4,000 to
( operate and maintain
The plant will deliver power not only
/ to the city of Keokuk, but to St Louis,
/ in Missouri. Quincy, in Illinois Bur-
/ lingtOn, in Iowa, and many other cities
/ in the power zone, a radius OF $50
miles practically determining the lin
| its A contract for so, 900 horse power
annually has already been made with
a light and power company in St Louis,
is more than 100 miles south of the
dam. smaller towns also will bene-
fit. but the policy Of the company is to
sell power at wholesale only, that is it
VIII make contracts with one concern
IN each city that will in turn sell the
power at retail. Independently owned
transmission lines will be built to the
power plant and the Juice delivered
to them in such quantities as may be
desired.
Lee Saw Future Possibilities.
The idea Of Harvesting the MlSSiS-
sippi river is not new. When Robert
E Lee was a lieutenant of engineers
In the "Old army" he made a report
u the war department on the great
amount OF water power in the Des
MOines rapids OF the Mississippi. and
anticipated that in the future some
use would be made of il. But he was
too good an engineer to think that the
time had then come.
Joseph Smith was more of a dream
er and less Of an engineer. and when
ne founded the Mormon church il was
part Of his scheme of development
at NauvOo that these repids should be
dammed and made to run the ma
chlnery of his colony. One man ac-
tually did construct several wing dams
into the rapids. TO operate a mill, and
although his first dam was carried
away BY ice, be built again and again
But all that was IN the first half Of
Copper Does the Work.
The 10th century saw a greater vi /
sion- The dreamer this time was an !
right to stand high in the rank of his /
profession His name is Hugh L /
Cooper, and the keokuk dam always !
will stand as a monument to his vi /
sion, his skill and his intrepid per- !
Slstence- Congress granted the right /
to construct the dam in February, !
1901, but Mr.. Cooper was long in find 4
ing the money WhereWlth to begin the /
work After years of indefatigable /
work, the capital was found, a BOs- I
ton company undertaking the con- 1
struction and the money coming large
y from Canada, England, France, !
Germany and Belgium.
The preliminary work was begun in
1910 and IN January of 1911. and the Z
actual construction was begun with
the building of a Golfer dam in the
frozen river Fro mthat day on until l
now the work has not halted, and it
is now practically complete.
All Under Government Supervision.
Not only the canal lock and dry /
dock being built for government use,
but every other part of the entire con-
SlrucJloH from the beginning was I'M
der the careful and constant supervi-
sion Of the chief engineers OF the war ]
department The plans were all sub
mitted and were worked out in mi
mute detail by army engineers before
the necessary approval was obtained !
for proceeding with the work In
spectors were present all the time to
see that the army requirements were
actually carried out in the construc-
ton
Every part OF the work was done
by the power company, under the d.
rection Of Mr. Cooper, by admins
tratiOn, no part of it was done by
contract
The dedication ceremonies in Aug
Ust viii be in the nature of a tri-
state celebration, governor Clarke. Of
Iowa; governor Dunno of Illinois. and
s overnOr Major, Of Missouri, being in
actual charge
Tor0Orror4-- l