Vulcan Street Plant
The Vulcan Street Plant was the first Edison hydroelectric central station. The plant was built on the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin, and put into operation on September 30, 1882. According to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Vulcan Street plant is considered to be "the first hydro-electric central station to serve a system of private and commercial customers in North America". It is a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark, an IEEE milestone and a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. The Vulcan Street Plant was housed in the Appleton Paper and Pulp Company building, which burned to the ground in 1891. A replica of the Vulcan Street Plant was later built on South Oneida Street. Origin The Vulcan Street Plant was conceptualized by H. J. Rogers – who was the president of the Appleton Paper and Pulp Co. and of the Appleton Gas Light Co. during this time. According to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, H. J. Rogers first came up with the idea for a hydro-electric central station after talking with a friend of his, H. E. Jacobs, while they were on a fishing trip. The Appleton Edison Electric Light Company H. E. Jacobs, who was working for Western Edison Light Company of Chicago as a licensing agent, informed H. J. Rogers about Thomas Edison’s plan for a steam-driven electric power plant in New York City called the Pearl Street Plant. Upon learning about Edison’s advances in electric light technology and electric generators, Rogers worked to bring together a group of investors to create one of the first hydro-electric central stations in the world. For this reason, the Appleton Edison Electric Light Company was formed and incorporated on May 25, 1882. While Edison’s Pearl Street Plant was still under construction, the founders of the Appleton Edison Electric Light Company – H. E. Jacobs, A. L. Smith, H. D. Smith, and Charles Beveridge – began planning the Vulcan Street Plant. In July 1882, engineer P. D. Johnston, who worked for Western Edison Light Company of Chicago during this time, visited Appleton to explain the details of Edison’s lighting system to the founders of the Appleton Edison Electric Light Company. After this meeting, the founders decided to test the viability of hydro-electric lighting by first installing it in their homes and mills. As a result, two Edison "K" type generators were ordered. The first generator was installed in H. J. Roger’s paper mill, the Appleton Paper and Pulp Company, and is the generator that began operation on September 30, 1882. The second generator was installed in its building on Vulcan Street and began operation on November 25, 1882. Problems and successes On September 27, 1882, the first generator began operation, but without success. Hence, Edward T. Ames, the installer, returned to Appleton to correct the problem. After a few days of troubleshooting, the generator was repaired and successfully entered operation on September 30, 1882. This was only 26 days after Thomas Edison began to successfully operate his steam-driven