Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1917-01-03
Fl 81 IT'LL III Frs

that year, while this year the con-
struction has been directed by Joseph T.
John, both skilled in such work. In the
building OF the dam there have been used
5000 barrels, or 100000 pounds OF
cement and great quantity OF steel for
reinforcement, while for the making OF
the forms into which the cement was
poured more than q million feet OF
lumber was required.
The dam will create head Of seventy
five feet, flowing out the big timber dam
built by the Great Northern Paper Com
psny at Chesuncook lake in 1905, and
merging Ripogenus, Chesuncook and Car
ibou lakes, Bear pond and three other
ponds into one body Of water, twenty five
miles long and varying in width from
half mile to three miles. This flow
back will food large areas, from which
the timber has been cut and all habita-
tions removed, and will make a decided
change in the aspect OF the locality.
Within the great reservoir thus created
will be stored twenty-five billion cubic
feet OF water, to be let out as occasion de-
mands through gates electrically con-
trolled. A long sluice, 450 feet long, with
rs per cent. grade, has been provided,
and this will be vast improvement upon
the old way, for there always will be
they have passed the dam, whereas the
OLD dam, nearby, often has failed to hold
enough to ''fiush" the sticks through TO
Big Eddy.
But while Ripogenus dam Will De great
conservor OF water supply, it is more in
teresting as a creator of power. Accord
ing to the engineers, the dam gives a
"head" of about seventyfive feet, its
height above that representing roadway,
or bridge, supported by series Of con-
crete piers in its Ave feet overhang, which
imparts sonnet hing of ornament to the
structure. From the crest of the dam to
the lower end OF Ripogenus gorge, how
ever, there is fall Of 261 feet, and right
there lies the importance of the work.
There would be no difficulty in storing
water at other places sufficient for all
needs of industry along the river. At
Chesuncook alone the Great Northern
created eleven years ago storage basin
OF II, 900, 600, 600 cubic feet capacity, and at
Twin lakes it has another reservoir con-
tanning 14.OOO, 100000 feet. Ripogenus
means power, and nature could not have
lent more encouragement to a power pro-
ject than is apparent here.
The gorge is like canal hewn from the
solid rock, its depth varying from ten to
! a hundred feet, it's width from two to
eight rods. The rocky sides rise straight
as castle walls, and the food RACES like
a mill race in its narrow confines, carry
ing its foam and turbulence far out into
Big Eddy, the quiet water below.
Those who know about Ripogenus
expect that its tremendous energy will be
developed very soon-lik ly within a
year or two. The most feasible method,
it is believed, will be to tunnel through
the hills that lie between the dam and
the foot of the gorge. One engineer
already had suggested this as the only
practicable method. How much power
would thus be developed no one as yet
has estimated, but it would be very
great-enough, as one of the builders
said, to generate electricity for all north
ern Maine.
Many and great physical obstacles were
encountered in the prosecution OF the
Ripogenus enterprise, but all were over
come by the resources OF capital and in
genuity. In the first place, there is no
railroad within thirty five miles of the
gorge. There was . miserable "tote''
road from Lily bay, ON Moosehead lake,
rambling thirty-one miles through the
woods to the site Of the dam, but trans
portation Of 1900 tons OF cement and
other things in proportion over this cor
duroy trail by horse power would be
tremendously expensive (about so toni