The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1916-04-04
TO INSTALL NEW
1850 K. v. MACHINE
WISCONSIN GAS AND ELECTRIC
COMPANY TO SPEND S50,0OO IN
THIS VICINITY THIS YEAR.
A Part of the General Scheme to
Equip to Take Care Of the Con-
stantly Increasing Demand.

|
One of the important improvements
to be made in Watertown this year,
and one in which considerable money
| is involved is the installation of a
1850 kilowatt motor generator in the
power plant of the Wisconsin Gas and
Electric company on Oconomowoc
avenue
The local plant has long ago passed
| the stage where the original installa-
| ton is sufficient, and only last fall
| put in motor generator temporarily,
placing it on a concrete foundation
outside the building, and constructing
| a shelter over it Of lumber. While
| hat installation was the means Of re-
| lieving the demand on the plant for
! the time being, it was merely a make
shift until better machinery with
| larger capacity could be provided. The
motor generator installed last fall
was brought here from West Allis, and
may be returned to the plant in that
city when the new and larges machine
| IS in place.
|
| it will be placed in the northwest cor
ner of the power plant, in the place
now occupied by three transformers,
which will be moved to the floor above
The demand for electric current on
he local station has increased enor-
nouSly Current has been sent south
Of Watertown since the lines were
| built to Johnson Creek, Jefferson and
Lake Mills, and up to this point, with
he generator added last fall, the
| )lant was enabled to handle the de-
| mand; but during the coming year
| ines will be built south from Jeffer-
son to Whitewater and Lake Geneva,
connecting at Whitewater with line
| from Burlington and they in turn
| form the circuit back to WatertOwn
| through the sub-stations at Burling-
| ton, Milwaukee, West Allis, and
Waukesha Beach When the southern
extentions are completed a circuit of
about $50 miles will have been COM
pleted, supplying current to interme
diate cities and villages, all of which
| vas explained in THE LEADER several
| weeks ago.
The large scale production Of power
by The Milwaukee Electric Railway
and Light company, the Wisconsin Gas
and Electric company and the contract
arrangements with the two large
hydro-electric plants on the WiscOn-
sin river at Kilbourn and Prairie du
Sac have made available in south
eastern Wisconsin an estimated
supply of cheap power which is devel-
oping the use Of electric service in
cities and villages to an unprecedent-
ed degree.
Many cities have found it economical
to purchase their entire electric
power supply, shutting down small
and relatively inefficient local steam
plants. In most of these cases the
load has grown to a point where the
old steam plant is wholly inadequate.
AS in every manufacturing and dis
tributing business, large scale produc
ton cuts the cost, and the day of the
small individual or isolated plant is
gone never to return.
The officers of the Wisconsin Gas
and Electric company decided to in
stall the new 1850 kilowatt motor gen
orator in the Oconomowoc avenue
plant so that adequate additional
capacity would be available for both
additional demand and as reserve for
existing equipment The policy of
the company is to keep ahead of the
demand
Work on placing the new machine
will commence about May /, and will
involve an expenditure of approx
mately $4,000, including other
changes and improvements being
undertaken at the same time.
Few citizens in Watertown, and it is
more than likely officials of the cleo
trio interests besides, realized the
money which would be involved and
the enormous expanse of territory to
be served when the present plant was
constructed in the eastern part of the
city. While the original plant on the
Wisconsin river at Kilbourn is large,
and hopes were Entertained that it
would meet the electrical needs in this
vicinity for years to come, it was not
long until the Watertown station was
a considerable factor as an auxiliary
The Kilbourn plant has been over
| Swallowed by the Prairie du Sac plant
The combined capacity of these two
| plants, however, is small as compared
with the Commerce street steam
plant in Milwaukee, which at all times
stands ready to take not only it's own
load but that of Kilbourn and Prairie
du Sac as well. Watertown has the
full benefit of the combined capacity
of these large sources of power
| All of these conditions have been
brought about in quite recent years,
and as an electric manufacturing
center Watertown is one of the most
] imnQrtant seats in the