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Like so many others,
Horatio Gates Livermore got caught up in the gold rush and came to
Folsom in 1850 seeking gold, apparently with no success. A native of
Maine, he was familiar with logging and saw possibilities in the
American River for water wheels to power a sawmill and a river to
float logs from the mountains to the mill.
By 1862, he
and his sons gained control of Natoma Water and Mining Company. They
added some 9,000 acres to the company's assets to obtain the water
rights so they could float logs down stream. But, they also needed
to build a dam above Folsom to create a holding area for logs, and
power a sawmill. Construction on the dam began in 1867, but the
Livermore's soon decided they needed convict labor to minimize their
costs. In exchange for 350 acres for a prison site, the State Prison
Board agreed to provide the labor. Unfortunately, the Livermore's
couldn't get their workers until the prison was complete in
1880.
The dam was finally
completed in 1893 but by then it was obvious that floating logs down
the river through a multitude of boulders was more difficult than
anticipated. They began to realize there was more potential in using
the water from their dam to turn generators and produce electricity
than in using it to turn water wheels. In addition, there was ample
demand for this electricity 22 miles downstream in Sacramento. At
that time, the longest overhead run of electricity was five miles so
there were many skeptics. Still, they persisted, having generators
shipped around Cape Horn, and on July 13, 1895 they began delivery
of electricity over 22 miles, the longest run in the world, to
Sacramento.
The Powerhouse
continued operation until November of 1952. That year the old dam
was destroyed as part of the construction of the new
Folsom Dam. It
is now preserved as a part of the California State Park System. It
is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 4:00 pm.
It is an interesting tour and well worth the time.
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