The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1917-02-22
FRANkLIN HIGHT AND POWER co.
Continued from First Page)


ing secured power privileges at
Cleveand's rips on the Carrabassett
and with great energy Mr.. Sturte-
want set to work to build a power
house and put in the machinery need
full to produce the electric current in
large measure.
This power house is on the south
side of the Carrabassett in the town
of Arson and is by carriage road 20
miles from Pennington across coun-
try considerably less distant The
power house is built of brick and ee-
thoro and substantial manner. II is
35X50 feet in size and has 4o0-
horsepower generator and Lombard
water wheel governor which supplies
the right amount of power for cur
rent used at all times. All lines
are connected with a switchboard in
the power house which enables one
to tell at a glance the amount of
power being used in the aggregates.
The plant is built in units and has
an extra water wheel for emergency
cases. These wheels are enclosed
in great iron cylinders and one only
sees the outside and can only inn
agine the power and the happenings
inside. The main belt that drives
the plant is feet wide and rs feet
long. 1t runs at speed of mile a
minute. The walls of the power
house are 80 feet high on the canal
side and built Of cement. The sec
Ond floor is Is feet below the water
level and the pit is IS feet lower,
making 80 feet below the water in
the canal.
The dam is about 25o feet long
and the canal is 1900 feet long. II
took two summers TO eXcaVatc the
canal with IA crew of 200 men, 30
horses and - wheel scoops. The
crews were divided into Ii men each
with an overseer to each crew. The
fan of water over the dam is q feet
and this can he made much greater
by the use of lashboards. The flow
of water runs back from the dam a
distance of about four miles, and one
can imagine the tremendous water
reserve thus created
Two dwelling houses have been
built on these premises the past
year which are models of neatneSs
and in which the men who operate
the power house live with their fam
lilies. commodious tool house and
ii garage that will accommodate two
or more machines have also been
erected The company owns a strip
of land on each side of the falls and
on the side OF the power house there
must be several acres in the strip
Owing to the Inconvenience and
entering the power house aud be
cause of the water from the roof, a
pretty piazza has been added to the
south end of it, and, owing to the
noise in the house from the machin-
cry. telephone booth of an up-to-
date pattern has been built just out
side the house with a call bell of
generous dimensions and tone on the
inside. The power house is abso-
lutely fire proof being constructed
entirely OF brick, cement and iron.
A short distance away is the sub
station, where the current is step
ped up" to $4,000 volts and then sent
over the 35 miles of high tension
transmission lines to the several vii
lagos furnished with light and power
by this plant AT the sub-stations in
these places the current is stepped
down" to 1900 volts before it enters
the streets for lighting purposes
A little further on, a covered
bridge has been built across The head
OF the canal and in this bridge which
is used to reach the power house, are
located the four head gates to the
canal By the use of these the canal
can be emptied of water This
bridge keeps the ice and SNOW away
from the gates so that they can be
used at any time of year without be
new land has been made from the
dirt that was taken out of the canal
and this land extends over a portion
of what used to be the river bed
A most excellent spring of water is