Electricity and its Development at Niagara Falls
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| Audience/Grade: | College Freshman - Continuing Education |
| Discipline(s): |
Civil Engineering Construction Engineering Electrical Engineering |
| Special Topic(s): |
History of Technology |
| Learning Resource Type: | Reference - General |
| Media Type: | WWW |
| Author(s): | Library, University of Buffalo |
| Description: | Excellent history of the design, construction and development of Niagra Falls for generating hydroelectric power. Exerpt: "By the time planning began for the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, hydroelectric power generation had already been in place at Niagara Falls for nearly a decade. As William Andrews explains in his article "How Niagara Has been Harnessed," a charter had been obtained from the New York Legislature in 1886 to begin developing the water power of the Falls. But those who realized the commercial value of developing the cataracts were also "opposed to the desecration of the most impressive natural object of the world for utilitarian purposes." Add to this philosophy the establishment of the State Reservation at Niagara in 1885 and the result was the design and construction of hydroelectric power plants that were engineering marvels of their day. . . In October 1893, Westinghouse was awarded the contract to build the 5,000 horsepower generators for the Niagara Falls Power Company's Power House No. 1 as well as all auxiliary electrical apparatus, including exciters, measuring instruments and switching devices. Transmission of alternating current electricity from Niagara Falls to Buffalo began in 1896, and was well in place by the time plans began for the Pan-American Exposition in 1901. The General Electric Company may have distributed the electricity to illuminate the grounds of the Exposition, but it was a Westinghouse generator that produced that power." |
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| Related Resources | |
| Keywords: | hydroelectric power, Niagra Falls, power grids, transmission of electricity, dam design, dam construction |
| Usage Tip | |
| Use of Resource: | history of technology with photos. |
| Difficulty: | Very Easy |
| Interactivity Level: | Low |
| Version Info | |
| Publication Date: | 2004 |
| Platform/Format: | WWW |
| Cost: | Free |
| Download URL: | http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/exhibits/panam/sel/electricity... |
| Metadata: | IEEE LOM Record |
| Collection: |
NEEDS
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