Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1914-02-15
AUGUSTUS NEW
POWER PLANT
OPENS MONDAY
Electricity Generated From Dam
ON Savannah River Will
Supply City.

AUGUSTA, Feb. 14.-Augusta will
be furnished with hydro electric pow
err Monday direct from the stevens
Creek development, of the Georgia
Carolina Power Company.
Augusta is to celebrate the opening
Of the big power plant in a behtting
manner. There will be special train
to the site of the dam, leaving here
at noon, and about $50 people will be
the guests of the Augusta-Aiken
Railway and Electric Corporation.
Included among these will be the
Mayor and members of Council. the
Mayor and members of Council of
North Augusta, members OF the Riv-
er and Canal Commission, offlcers OF
the Merchants and Manufacturers
Association and others. A considerable
number Of Northern capitalists, head
ed by President f. Q. Brown, of the
Augusta Aiken, and high officials of
]. G. White & Co, will come.
Darkness to Precede Change.
At night there will be a big cele
bration on Broad street, platform
will be erected near the monument
on which brass bands will be sta
toned and there will be several adj
dresses The city will be in total
darkness for a few seconds. while the
transfer from the current at the
- e. l,vr6
electric plant Is made. Then the
members of the Merchants and Man
ufacturers' Association will go to the
Commercial Club, where they will be
the guests of the railway corporation
at luncheon.
The big development at Stevens
Creek was started less than two years
ago To complete the work has cost
a little over 100000, exclusive Of
the property purchased. There were
thousands of acres Of land bought by
j. p. Wood, a considerable time be-
fore the power plant was begun. Mr..
Wood was the father and the pro-
moter of the enterprise.
Workmen started cleaning up July
s, 1912, preparatory to building the
big dam across the Savannah River
eight miles above Augusta, and not
since that date has there been any
let up. The work has been prose-
cuted with such vigor that it will be
finished five months ahead Of con-
tract time and 1t would have been
finished even earlier had not high
water in the river caused delays, all
told. of two or three weeks.
Work on the first Golfer dam was
started September 4, 1912; December
rs of that year work was begun in the
wheel pit where the powerhouse is
situated; February 10. 1913. the first
bucket of concrete was poured; on
July /, 1918, the erection of the dam
proper with the locks and the pow
erhouse was started; August !. 1913
the erection of steel in the power
house started; September Q, 1913,
brick work on the powerhouse began !:
January IS, 1914, last concrete was
poured the water was not allowed
to escape any longer and the pond
began filling up. February Is. 1914,
power will be turned on. Tests have
been made and everything is in read
mess for the generating OF current.
Much Material Used.
1t required 81 900 cubic yards of
concrete for the power plant; 1901
barrels of cement, and from rs to so
tons of dynamite. The camp in which
the workmen lived cost the company
$4,000. The company procured its
rock from a quarry a short distance
above the dam. In order to get to
the dam from the c. and w. c. Rail
road, A. J. Twiggs & Sons built a
railroad three miles long, which cost
the company many thousands of
dollars
There are being completed now five
units of more than 5000 horsepower
each and provision was made for the
putting in of five more.