The farmer and mechanic., 1915-04-20
By GEORGE r. COCHRAN.


relopment on the Catawba River at |
.>hat is known locally as Island Ford, |
yut which is officially designated now
as lookout dozen miles from
ctatesville. and the same distance
from Newton. is about one-third COM
pleted The work is being carried on
steadily by 500 men and is to be fin
ished early next fall. Thirty thousand
nvdro-electric horsepower is to be
developed, and the project will cost
the company a million and a quarter
dollars.
Prosaic enough to the veteran engi-
,aers and sophisticated laborers who
have grown familiar with vast con-
structions which curb, control and
atilize elemental forces of Nature, the
.iant project possesSe fascinating in
fprest for the farmers who drop in
from the surrounding country and Tor
the townspeople who visit the titanic
Undertaking from nearby towns
Enough Of the huge dam has been
completed to awe the mind accus-
.omed to small dimensions There Is
poetry in the thought for the CataW-
Gian that his" river. feared and re-
spected, wilful. impetuous through all
II.
moods of majestic might, capable OF
doing tremendous damage, as it has
done more than once, and from its
mountain birth far down toward the
sea impatient Of restraint, is to be
fettered and held in leash; and that
II is furnishing the material for the
fetters that ere being forged to bind
H. Sand is sucked from it's bed at
Lookout for the cement: hard blue
rock is taken from its shores and
from the excavation for the tail race;
and the river is even generating the
electricity which furnishes motive
power for the great array of mechan-
icai appliances which are making the
chains wherewith the noble stream is
t. be chained
Half u Thousand Toll.
Day after day without loss of time
half a thousand men are tOiling heav
lily to construct the monster piece o.
masonry. During all the bad weather
of early spring. when snow storm sue
ceeded snow storm in recOrd-breakint
style the force lost only a negligible
amount Of time The dam is bein.
built III feet thick where 1t rests upOl
bed rock; and it will be feet wide u
the crest, which. is to tower 83 fee
above the river bed.
The site is strategic. The dam will
be thrown across the river at tn
coutHtTn extremity Ol d. lOHS
Work was begun first on the 1redel
county side. and that arm Of the rive
blocked by a Golfer dam until the ma
sonry could rise above and out of tn
way Of the water. This phase OF tn
construction Is reached now. Hug
metals for handling the water and de
iivering 1t to the turbines are bein
placed in what will be when finishe
the power house. which is on the Ire
doll side. The uncOmpleted porto
of the dam varies in height until nea
the center it approaches the tota
hnal altitude of the dam. being no
some II feet high. Within two weef
the Catawba arm Of the stream Wi
De blocked by Golfer dam. and (
the middle of May the masonry wi
be started there. From the time tf
second Golfer dam is completed, TT
entire river will be thrown throue
the flood gates Of the other arm, whie
Is much the narrowest part OF IL
rivers whole channel.
Making An Inland Sea.
veritable inland sea will resu
when the dam is complete and Il
water gates closed on that gre
stream which sweeps SO hurried
down from it's Blue Ridge sources al
which at no point north of the o
dams below Rock Hill, S. c., has be-
harnessed as it will be at Looko'
Those South Carolina stations devel
$4,000 horse power each; the new o
recently contracted for at Fishi
Creek, s. c., will develop 10000 a
as 10000 will be developed at Loo
out, this station will be one of t
LARGEST the company has built.
Up on the hill on the Catawba 81
not a great distance from the dam
the old Wilfong homestead, and wh
the dam is completed. the river "
not only submerge the site of tf
historic house. but will sweep abo
its highest roof. Nine miles up
river. or to the Oxford neighborho
will the big pond reach; and tht
will be navigation for the Highland
that would delight the "sounder a
the coastal river man. No more
pealing place could be found that {
foothill country for summer re
dences. perched along the hills VIII