A wood-burning powerhouse was built and partially equipped in 1889 at Fulton Park in time for the arrival of the first Metropolitan Railway trolley on December 31, 1889. The powerhouse was fully operational for only a little more than two years but likely continued to serve as a carbarn and back-up power supply.
Fulton Park Powerhouse Plant -- Oregonian, January 1, 1891 [Labbe,p71]
The powerhouse burned wood for fuel, and needed a fair amount of water to make steam. As we shall see this was a fatal flaw of the location — seemingly plentiful timber ran out and water was in short supply, especially in the dry months.
Location
The 120’ x 36’ building was located at the north end of a natural ravine that was excavated to accommodate a three-level structure including a daylight basement.
The powerhouse was located as indicated on this modern map.
Fire and Water
We believe trees were cleared from the Fulton Park development to fuel the powerhouse boilers for a while, but additional wood was likely brought in on heavy-rail cars. The Fulton powerhouse was built just to the south of the Oregon & California (Southern Pacific) Railroad which ran along what is now Barbur Boulevard, and we believe there was an O&C spur that allowed for such deliveries.
We’re not sure how the powerhouse obtained the supply of water the boilers needed to create steam for the engines, since there were only small creeks and seasonal water nearby. Stephens Creek, in the canyon below the powerhouse, would have been the principal source, but they may have also captured water that ran through the ravine, and brought in water during the dry months.
In the beginning, they tried using a hydraulic ram to pump water uphill from Stephens Creek, but that water must have been very limited by late summer. There was a 5,000 gallon water tank on a tower, and there was also some kind of 'Well' in the ground floor of the powerhouse. Eventually, lack of water was a factor in pulling the plug on the powerhouse.
There was a dubious claim made in the newspaper that crews were working on an Artesian well — which is highly unlikely at this location. Please contact us if you have an expert opinion!
Two other problems the trolley company had to deal with in terms of water supply: 1) A steam engine contaminates its condensate with oil, so that condensed water couldn’t go back into the boilers — it was probably released on site and may have flowed down to Stephens Creek; 2) The pipes froze during the first winter, halting operation. The setup was modified somehow to make it less vulnerable to freezing temperatures.
The Powerhouse Building
The day after the F Line’s inaugural trip on the last day of 1889, The Morning Oregonian published a glowing article with this description of the powerhouse:
The building is most ample for all necessary purposes, costing alone about $10,000. In the lower portion, or basement of the building is placed all the machinery, whilst the upper portion, on grade with the road, is used for office, etc., there being three tracks on the floor, with capacity for 15 cars. Under each track pits are arranged, so that motors can most easily be cleaned after the day's run. Above the floor are three commodious and convenient rooms for employees, and a water tank of 5000 gallons is also placed here, where, in conjunction with a large well in the basement, an ample supply of water can be retained for emergencies.
The powerhouse ground floor was sized in order to have duplicate sets of equipment. The first set (boilers/engine/dynamos) was in place by the end of 1889. Another set arrived in May 1890, and was installed then. So for the first few months, the system was underpowered despite the Oregonian’s optimism on New Year’s Day:
The company commence operations with six motor cars for passengers, and one for construction purposes, each of which is fitted and propelled by two 15 horse power Motors. The cars have sufficient power for their own propulsion as well as trailing additional ones, which it is their intention to add as business demands.
The following speculative floor plan is how we imagine the powerhouse to have been set up, based on various newspaper descriptions, two illustrations, what we know of trolley operations, and the laws of physics. On the lower level, concrete slabs were poured for the heavy equipment, which included 2 steam engines, 4 dynamos (generators), and 4 large boilers. There had to be stairways to the different levels, though we’re not speculating on the layout of the dormitory or the whereabouts of any sanitary or cooking facilities. Judging by the powerhouse drawing, the tracks coming onto the ground floor from the west ran on an elevated platform or trestle, which we estimate at 20’ in length. Adding that to the 100’ footprint we mapped out on the available flat ground gives us the oft-quoted 120’ length of the building.
Reportedly, multiple fully-loaded cars caused the system to bog down trying to ascend to Fulton Park, or even going up 2nd Street. Cars had to take turns with the ascent. Additional power was needed, and a boost was soon supplied from the Central Station — a powerhouse associated with the Inman-Poulsen sawmill in East Portland, where the Oregon Museum of Science and Industries (OMSI) is now.
There’s some question about when the Fulton Park Powerhouse ceased generating electricity, but by mid-1892 the Metropolitan Line was powered principally from the Central Station. The sawmill provided plenty of ‘hog fuel' for the boilers at the Central Station, in contrast to the growing scarcity of both wood and water at Fulton Park. According to a newspaper account, the Fulton powerhouse served as back-up during the Flood of 1894, but otherwise the equipment may have sat idle for several years.
In 1897, under new ownership, the Fulton Park powerhouse began to be "dismantled,” and its generating equipment was moved to the Central Station. We believe the building continued to be used as a carbarn until the end of trolley operations, but we don’t know when demolition might have begun. While the tracks and timbers have disappeared, we have found fragments of brick and concrete in the ravine — the only trace (so far!) of this substantial industrial building.
The F Line stopped running in 1899, replaced by a lower-elevation route (the N-S Line). Portland’s streetcar network eventually was powered by hydroelectricity generated at various dams in the area and distributed by substations, eliminating the need for Individual powerhouses like the one at Fulton Park.
Bushwhacking
It took us a couple of years to eliminate several possible sites for the powerhouse. Our biggest red herring came from the notes of David Stearns, who did much of the research that Labbe’s book is based on. He said (without citation) that the Fulton powerhouse was “precisely where the school playground stands today, on the southeast corner of the present SW First and Logan.” This caused us to tromp around on the wrong edge of the ravine, while also entertaining the idea of other sites, such as where the nearby church is across Miles, in the school parking lot, in the community gardens, and on a “grassy knoll” above I-5.
But as soon as the LIDAR and the Lewis & Dryden map meshed, it was time to get into the ravine with clippers and pokers and measuring devices. Our intrepid team member, Erik, who had long been focused on the ravine and had already done his own sleuthing, soon found fragments of bricks in the middle of what would be the powerhouse footprint. He reasoned that this wasn't likely debris tossed into the ravine, but perhaps bits of the chimney.
This excited us. John soon ventured into the ravine and almost immediately discovered a concrete pier overgrown with ivy. The crude but very solid pier is shown below, with clippers for size comparison.
Crude Concrete pier of some kind in the Fulton Park ravine.
Probing the ground at places within the footprint hits something solid about 8" or 9" down, or less! There could have been as many as 10 separate concrete pads for machinery which most likely have been covered by a century of fallen limbs, trees, ivy, etc.
It’s impossible to know the shape of the ravine before the powerhouse, but it would certainly have been excavated and flattened and cleared of trees. Since then the ravine has filled with trees and brush and the human-modified sides have probably sloughed toward a natural angle of repose.
We hope that the city will support our effort to further survey the site. The discovery of concrete slabs, more bricks, old tools, and other solid evidence would bolster our case and bring the public closer to learning about an important historical resource.
A Tour of the Boiler Room
Reckoning about much water a steam engine uses... Google says:
Four gallons per hour per horsepower is the rule of thumb when calculating water used by a steam boiler, but 34.5 pounds of steam per hour per horsepower is more exact.
—
So if the engine was 150 HP… it would have used 600 gallons/hour?? !?
Tank on the tower...
(5,000 gallons x 8.3 pound/gallon == 41,500 lbs == 20.7 tons!)
The dynamo system probably was “responsive” to the load, ie. the number of trolleys running and the load (passengers) being hauled up the grade at any given time.
The more load, the more power was needed/used.
That is, 125 HP wasn’t needed continuously.
The trolley motors were only 15 HP each, so go figure.
This all means less water was used, but who knows?
From the Oregonian, January 1, 1890:
LIGHTNING IN HARNESS The four cars climbed the steep grade from Mill street to Harrison without difficulty, moving along apparently with as much ease as on the level, although the plant is not calculated to run so many heavily loaded cars up the grade at the same time.
A Steam Engine and Two Dynamos
From The Morning Oregonian, Jan 1890.
In the basement is the boiler room containing two large boilers and the engine* and dynamos.
Mr R Thomas, formerly of the Willamette Iron works has charge of the engine. It is a Ball engine of 150 horse power, and capable of running at 226 revolutions per minute. It is a beautiful piece of machinery and was much admired for the steady and noiseless manner in which it runs.
There are two Edison dynamos of seventy horse power each and the wall near is covered with indicators, switches, and other electrical apparatus, which Mr E L Fuller Superintendent of the company explained to those who could comprehend them. The base of the dynamos when they are running becomes a very powerful magnet, and a large iron wrench when placed against one of them required a strong pull to get it away.
(*In today's parlance, Engine refers to Steam Engine. Dynamos are generators. - jm)
From the Oregonian, January 2, 1890:
When three cars attempted to climb the steep grade up to Harrison street all close together the wire demurred and one of the cars had to wait a while. (This was before they got the second system in operation.)
Steam Engine
Here is a Ball engine that existed at the time. (There were several kinds.) One can assume that the two flywheels were each belted to a dynamo — so one engine drove two dynamos. Specs published in Oregonian: 150 HP running at 226 RPM.
Improved Ball Engines - VintageMachinery.org
Dynamo
Below may or may not be the same kind of Edison dynamo used at the powerhouse. But then again, it might actually be one of them! LOL. We don't know the origin of this particular dynamo.
Edison dynamo at Oregon Electric Railway Museum in Brooks Oregon - J.Miller
Since the powerhouse provided DC (volts?) to the line, the dynamos may have further had AC-to-DC converters of some kind. (Details to come.)
Questions of Fact
What exactly was the water situation at the powerhouse?
How did staff decide when to run the generators (fixed schedule or by dispatch?)
What did the wall of gauges look like, and what exactly did it all do?
How did the total function of the Powerhouse change during the 1890s?
What happened to the timbers and brick when the powerhouse was dismantled?
Imaginative Questions
What was a typical crew at such a powerhouse? (Boilerman, Switchman, etc.)
What do you suppose dormitory life was like?
Was there a place for food prep? Plenty of steam heat for cooking!
Was there any running water?
What do you suppose they had for commodes?
References
David L Stearns Transcripts of Oregonian articles thru 1892 only
[LINK]
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