Upper Falls Hydroelectric Development Dam - Spokane, WA
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T0SHEA
N 47° 39.748 W 117° 25.350
11T E 468278 N 5278872
This hydro station was completed in 1922 to supply electricity to the city of Spokane. It diverts a portion of the Spokane River to produce electricity.
Waymark Code: WMJHMV
Location: Washington, United States
Date Posted: 11/20/2013
Views: 7
In the centre of the city, this powerhouse was capable of producing 10 Megawatts of power, sufficient to power about 7,500 homes. The powerhouse is situated at the foot of Havermale Island and is supplied with water via a 370 foot long penstock from headgates on the south channel of the Spokane River. It houses a single vertical shaft Francis turbine. Of neoclassical design, this powerhouse is now a treasured part of Spokane's Riverfront Park, its largest and most popular park.
Havermale Island sits in the centre of the river, with the north channel flowing around it to the north. A dam on the north channel at the upper end of Havermale Island creates a consistent water level to supply this powerhouse. Immediately below this powerhouse on the Spokane River is another power station, the Monroe Street Hydroelectric Development. With the installation of the Upper Falls control works, which consisted of two sixty-foot rolling sector gates and four vertical lift gates, a dependable storage impoundment ensured a controlled flow of water to the turbine-generator units of both the Monroe Street and Upper Falls HEDs.
