Turning the big 125: Folsom Powerhouse celebrates landmark birthday

One of Folsom's historic landmarks is celebrating a landmark birthday this week. Built in 1895, the Folsom Powerhouse turned 125 years old on Monday.Nestled on the hillside just southwest of Folsom's Rainbow Bridge, the Folsom Powerhouse State Historic Park continues to preserve this iconic piece of local history. The Folsom Powerhouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as being significant in the areas of engineering and industry on the national level.According to Daniel Bell, associate state archaeologist, it has been said that the powerhouse represented a momentous advance in the science of generating and transmitting electricity. In 1895, the facility brought high-voltage alternating current over long-distance transmission lines for the first time.It is also a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark and is designated as a California Registered Historical Landmark."The Folsom Powerhouse is a large part of the history of the city of Folsom and PG&E. Its importance and legacy live on in the visitor's center and state park," said Scott Hayes, a 35-year PG&E employee and president of the board of directors for the nonprofit Friends of the Folsom Powerhouse Association.In the early 1800s, gold mining had created the town of Folsom and indirectly led to the construction of the Folsom Powerhouse. The man who first sought to harness the American River for generating power for industrial purposes came to California in 1850 following the lure of gold. By the early 1860s, Horatio Gates Livermore had gained control of the Natoma Water and Mining Company, a firm that had built a network of dams, ditches and reservoirs that supplied water to the numerous gold mines in the American River area.According to Bell's in-depth research, Livermore hoped to apply waterpower to operating a sawmill and other industries in and around Folsom. In the mid 1860s, he started construction on a dam to provide a holding pond for the logs cut in the higher foothills and sent down the river. This task was more formidable than Livermore had anticipated, since labor costs would be so expensive for quarrying the stone and building the dam and system of canals and ditches.By the late 1880s, a settlement was finally reached and state officials agreed to provide prisoners for the dam construction.Soon, a canal was constructed some 9,500 feet long providing water power to four of the largest electrical generators that had been built upstream; the project was finished in 1893. Folsom State Prison was the first to benefit from the dam, putting its own hydroelectric powerhouse into operation that same year. Within two years, the Natoma Company's main powerhouse complex was completed and ready to transmit power to Sacramento.The power station remained in operation until 1952 when the original Folsom dam across the American River was destroyed to make way for the new much larger dam. The powerhouse was shut down after 57 years of continuous operation. Pacific Gas and Electric, who bought the original hydroelectric plant in 1902, donated the plant and most of its equipment to the state of California when the new hydroelectric plant was built as part of the new damIn the late 1960s or early 1970s, interpretive panels and displays depicting the history of the Folsom Powerhouse were installed in the garage at the north end of the office/shop building. Not long after this, the wood-frame trash screen at the mouth of the forebay under the east side of the concrete bridge was reconstructed. Starting around 1980, district and unit staff undertook more vigorous maintenance and restoration activities, repairing facilities damaged by repeated acts of vandalism and years without proper maintenance. Between 1987 and 1990, three major preservation projects were completed on the lower powerhouse, the main powerhouse and the office/shop building.This year, PG&E, working with California State Parks, will have a reproduction of an historic PG&E logo installed on the powerhouse. According to PG&E spokesperson Brandi Merlo, a celebration also will be held to honor the landmark anniversary, virtually, due to COVID-19 restrictions."State Parks is very excited to be celebrating the 125th anniversary of the Folsom Powerhouse. The Folsom Powerhouse State Historic Park is an incredible park that showcases one of California's historic gems," said Richard Preston-LeMay, Folsom sector superintendent. "This park highlights how hydroelectric power was sent 22 miles to Sacramento on July 13, 1895. It also presents today's energy-saving technologies through interactive displays and activities. We are honored to partner with PG&E on this occasion to help highlight the park's history and the role the powerhouse played in how electricity is delivered today."For more information about the Folsom Powerhouse State Historic Park, visit https://folsompowerhouse.org/.Currently, visitors can view the exterior of the powerhouse as the parking lot, day-use area and restrooms are open. The visitor's center and the powerhouse/museum are closed, due to the coronavirus. Brandi Merlo and and Daniel Bell contributed to this informative article