Georgetown Steam Plant is landmarked as a national treasure of mechanical engineering. Maybe I'll visit all of them sometime.
Seattle City Light (owner since 1951) opens this as a free museum, once a month on 2nd Saturday.
There're volunteers and City Light employees who give tours at 11am and 1pm. They make the history come alive. Hightly recommend the tour. Warning: steep stairs.
Today, we joined the 11am tour given by a former power engineer.
In the photo is one of the 2 verticle Curtis Turbans, built in 1906 and 1907.
There's a 3rd engine that's horizontal, sitting on the 2nd floor, that's built later, for more efficient servicing.
The 2nd photo is the red marker of measuring the fullness the cooling water tank.
Ajacent is the room with all the furnaces: 8 per row, in pairs.
These use coal or petroleum.
More detailed information can be found on this Seattle Times article.
The location is selected for its proximity to the street car service station. Electric street car was in the rage in early 1900s. Duamish River used to run right by it, provided cooling and the water source for the steam making. But it's straigtened up ~WWI. So a pump station and pipeline had to be installed to get water into this power plant. Later, the filled astuary (now flat land) was built into an airport runway, which forced the power plant to dismantle the 2 tall chimneys. It's surprising that this site was only shutdown in the 70s.
Nowadays, Seattle City Light gets over 80% of the energy from hydro-dams.
