Adams Power Plant Transformer House
Encyclopedia
Adams Power Plant Transformer House in Niagara Falls, New York
is a National Historic Landmark
ed building constructed in 1895. It is the only remaining structure that was part of the historic Edward Dean Adams Power Plant, the first large-scale, alternating current
electric generating plant in the world, built in 1895.
The Adams power plant followed an 1886 plan by engineer Thomas Evershed to tap the power of Niagara Falls
, which involved a "hydraulic canal" and a 7500 feet (2,286 m) brick-lined tunnel, when the Niagara Falls Power Company was formed. The Cataract Construction Co, a new company formed to exploit the opportunity, led by president Edward Dean Adams, first formed the International Niagara Commission in 1890 to come up with a plan for harnessing the Falls. The Commission favored electricity, but could not recommend a solution to Cataract.
In 1892, George Forbes
was hired as a technical consultant and in May 1893 he convinced the company to build a hydroelectric system based on polyphase
alternating current. Westinghouse Electric
was subcontracted to build 5000 hp AC generators, based on the work of Nikola Tesla
and Benjamin G. Lamme
, while the I. P. Morris Company of Philadelphia built the turbines based on the design of the Swiss company Faesch and Piccard.
The power plant went into operation on August 25, 1895. The transformer house building was designed by the architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White
. Locally quarried limestone was used in its construction. The transformer house was "built on the upper river, above deep excavations housing twenty-one generating units. Tailwater from the generators passed into a 7000-ft tailrace tunnel, which conveyed the water beneath the city to the lower river, near the present-day site of the Rainbow Bridge. The 18-ft by 21-ft tunnel required over 3 years to build, used more than 16 million bricks in a four-course lining. It also cost the lives of twenty-eight workers."
The Niagara Power Station No. 1, as it was then called, would eventually generate 50000 hp of electricity, and was the model for a second similar station built in 1904. The entire plant was officially named after Edward Dean Adams in 1927.
The original Westinghouse generators remained in operation in the transformer house until the plant closed in 1961, having been replaced by the Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant and the Lewiston Pump Generating Plant.
The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1975 and was designated a National Historic Landmark
in 1983 and an IEEE Milestone in 1990. It is located off 15th St., just south of Buffalo Avenue.
Niagara Falls, New York
Niagara Falls is a city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 50,193, down from the 55,593 recorded in the 2000 census. It is across the Niagara River from Niagara Falls, Ontario , both named after the famed Niagara Falls which they...
is a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
ed building constructed in 1895. It is the only remaining structure that was part of the historic Edward Dean Adams Power Plant, the first large-scale, alternating current
Alternating current
In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
electric generating plant in the world, built in 1895.
The Adams power plant followed an 1886 plan by engineer Thomas Evershed to tap the power of Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls
The Niagara Falls, located on the Niagara River draining Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is the collective name for the Horseshoe Falls and the adjacent American Falls along with the comparatively small Bridal Veil Falls, which combined form the highest flow rate of any waterfalls in the world and has...
, which involved a "hydraulic canal" and a 7500 feet (2,286 m) brick-lined tunnel, when the Niagara Falls Power Company was formed. The Cataract Construction Co, a new company formed to exploit the opportunity, led by president Edward Dean Adams, first formed the International Niagara Commission in 1890 to come up with a plan for harnessing the Falls. The Commission favored electricity, but could not recommend a solution to Cataract.
In 1892, George Forbes
George Forbes (scientist)
George Forbes FRS was an electrical engineer, astronomer, explorer, author and inventor, some of whose inventions are still in use.-Early life:...
was hired as a technical consultant and in May 1893 he convinced the company to build a hydroelectric system based on polyphase
Polyphase system
A polyphase system is a means of distributing alternating current electrical power. Polyphase systems have three or more energized electrical conductors carrying alternating currents with a definite time offset between the voltage waves in each conductor. Polyphase systems are particularly useful...
alternating current. Westinghouse Electric
Westinghouse Electric (1886)
Westinghouse Electric was an American manufacturing company. It was founded in 1886 as Westinghouse Electric Company and later renamed Westinghouse Electric Corporation by George Westinghouse. The company purchased CBS in 1995 and became CBS Corporation in 1997...
was subcontracted to build 5000 hp AC generators, based on the work of Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer...
and Benjamin G. Lamme
Benjamin G. Lamme
Benjamin Garver Lamme was an electrical engineer and chief engineer at Westinghouse, where he was responsible for the design of electrical power machines...
, while the I. P. Morris Company of Philadelphia built the turbines based on the design of the Swiss company Faesch and Piccard.
The power plant went into operation on August 25, 1895. The transformer house building was designed by the architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White
McKim, Mead, and White
McKim, Mead & White was a prominent American architectural firm at the turn of the twentieth century and in the history of American architecture. The firm's founding partners were Charles Follen McKim , William Rutherford Mead and Stanford White...
. Locally quarried limestone was used in its construction. The transformer house was "built on the upper river, above deep excavations housing twenty-one generating units. Tailwater from the generators passed into a 7000-ft tailrace tunnel, which conveyed the water beneath the city to the lower river, near the present-day site of the Rainbow Bridge. The 18-ft by 21-ft tunnel required over 3 years to build, used more than 16 million bricks in a four-course lining. It also cost the lives of twenty-eight workers."
The Niagara Power Station No. 1, as it was then called, would eventually generate 50000 hp of electricity, and was the model for a second similar station built in 1904. The entire plant was officially named after Edward Dean Adams in 1927.
The original Westinghouse generators remained in operation in the transformer house until the plant closed in 1961, having been replaced by the Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant and the Lewiston Pump Generating Plant.
The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1975 and was designated a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1983 and an IEEE Milestone in 1990. It is located off 15th St., just south of Buffalo Avenue.
External links
- "Power The Gift of Niagara", by John Aiken and Richard Aiken, Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, Adventures in Western New York History, volume X, 1962, (downloadable from http://bechsed.nylearns.org/, click on Adventures in WNY History)
- Edward D. Adams Station Power Plant, Niagara River & Buffalo Avenue, Niagara Falls, Niagara County, NY: 15 photos, 1 data page and 2 photo caption pages, at Historic American Building Survey