THE DIXON DAM
In 1845 with Dixon's population at just 400 people, an act was
passed in the State Legislature for the incorporation of the Dixon
Dam and Bridge Company. The main purpose at the time was two-fold,
for the erection of a toll bridge and a "good and sufficient dam
across the Rock River."
The board of directors for this new corporation were notable men
who had already worked for the growth of the early settlement. They
were John Dement, John Dixon, James P. Dixon, M. Fellows, Otis A.
Eddy, J. B. Brooks, Horace Preston and Dr. Oliver Everett.
During the fall and winter of 1846 and 1847 this company, with
Lorenzo Wood and Luther I. Towner as contractors, the erection of a
toll bridge across the river at the foot of Ottawa Avenue connected
the north and south sides of the town. This was the first of many
bridges which had to be replaced from the ravages of the river.
In August, 1849 the Dam and Bridge Company, through its
attorneys, L. Wood and S. G. Patrick. made application to the County
Commissioners, Court of Lee County, requesting that a jury be
impaneled to assess the damages such in their judgment would probably
result from the construction of a five foot high dam across the
river. Their verdict stated that such a dam would be a benefit and
that no damages would accrue from its erection.
The following year the company which now was known as the Rock
River Hydraulic Company entered into negotiations with Hanchet and
Dalston of Beloit, Wisconsin to construct the dam. The original
five-foot high dam was built by Messrs. Hanchet and Dalston with wood
and stone materials which were available from the Dixon area.
The dam was nearly 700 feet long and built strong enough to hold
back the flow of the water, which ranged in depth from 6 to 8 feet.
Around the same time of the dam construction, they also erected a
sawmill on the north bank of the river. Hanchet and Dalston were the
original owners of the dam, however, Col. John Dement and J. B.
Brooks who supplied labor and capital for the construction,
eventually acquired the ownership.
But the dam which was built proved to be weak and its life was
one of continual repair along with repeatedly being washed out in
part by freshets or greatly damaged by ice. Finally, by June of 1851
a dam had been built which withstood the power of the flood, much to
the delight of the owners. For now commercial growth could be
stimulated near the dam to harness the new water power.
Mills for the making of flour and other purposes were soon
erected and the race way on the south side of the river became the
center of much activity. At first, and for many years, power was
drawn from the dam instead of the race, and two or three mills
likewise were erected on the north side of the dam. Due to occasional
breaches, the original dam was replaced in 1865 with a rock-filled
timber-crib dam and built to a height of seven feet.
A new problem emerged as to the ownership of the water power. By
an oversight of the original builders, no adequate provision was made
for determining the capacity of the dam, and in dealing with
ownership's of the power, the term "inches of water power" was used
without undertaking to define the meaning of that term. To resolve
the conflicting ownership claims to the water power at the Dixon Dam
site, a water power agreement was entered into on May 10, 1880 by all
those claiming such power. That agreement divided the water power at
the Dixon Dam into 28,200 shares.
By 1890 electric power was first used in Dixon to light the city.
The Dixon Power and Lighting Company was established in 1892 when it
purchased the electric business developed by Charles Henderson who
operated an electric generation business to supply power to his shoe
factory and to nearby businesses and homes. During 1893 purchase of
the Becker and Underwood Flour Mill and installation of a
hydroelectric generator as a power source was also accomplished by
the Dixon Power and Electric Company. In 1899 the existing dam was
strengthened to make it more suitable for the electric generating
facility.
In 1904 a new dam was built just downstream and adjoining the old
dam. The old dam had been breached in the center, but was left in
place to add strength to the new dam which was constructed of
rock-filled timber cribbing, with a 1/4 inch steel crest cap, and a
three inch oak apron. A new headrace was also constructed which
supplied water to several interested parties that now formed the
Dixon Hydraulic Company. At that time, the power developed at the dam
was approximately 2,000 horsepower.
The present hydroelectric plant that stands today was constructed
and placed in operation in 1925 by the Illinois Northern Utilities
Company which acquired the power plant and water power rights in 1912
when the local electric company sold all of its holdings. In 1938 the
dam was reinforced with steel sheet piling driven along the upstream
and downstream faces of the dam and capped with concrete. Though the
mighty generating units that once were used to supply vast amounts of
power to the community, today that burden rests on the Byron Nuclear
Plant. According to Skip Miller of Commonwealth Edison, the
hydroelectric plant alongside the dam is still operational today, and
its significance to the emergence of electrical power along the river
will be recalled in countless stories.
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