Five Channels Dam is a hydro-electric dam on the Au Sable River in Michigan.
| Five Channels Dam | |
|---|---|
 The Five Channels Dam viewed from M-65 | |
  Location within the state of Michigan | |
| Location | Oscoda Township, Iosco County, Michigan |
| Coordinates | 44°27′19″N 83°40′36″W / 44.45526°N 83.6766°W |
| Opening date | 1912 |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Embankment dam |
| Power Station | |
| Installed capacity | 6 MW |
Five Channels Dam Archeological District | |
   | |
| Nearest city | Oscoda, Michigan |
| Area | 45.1 acres (18.3 ha) |
| NRHP reference No. | 01001016[1] |
| Added to NRHP | March 13, 2002 |
Background
editConsumers Power Company (now Consumers Energy) began construction on this hydro-electric dam in 1911 and completed it in 1912.[2] The dam, the second of six built by the company on the Au Sable River,[2] is named for the nearby location where there were once five distinct river channels.[3] The current plant is capable of producing 6,000 kilowatts.[3]
Five Channels Dam worker's camp
editDuring construction of the dam, the company tried to provide a healthy environment for workers[2] by incorporating lessons learned on worker safety and health during construction of Panama Canal.[3] They built a 45-acre camp for workers and their families, complete with a central water supply and sewage system, icehouse, school, washroom, store and boardinghouse.[2] The workers also received land on which to build a house; the resulting structures ranged clapboard houses to log cabins to tarpaper shacks to tents.[2] At the completion of dam construction, the worker's camp buildings were moved to the next construction site (the Loud Dam) or razed.[2] The site of the workers' camp built to support construction of the dam was listed as an archaeological site (designated 20ES112, 20IS113, 20IS114, 20IS115, and 20IS116) on the National Register of Historic Places on March 13, 2002.[3]
References
edit- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f "Five Channels Dam Workers Camp". MichMarkers.com. Archived from the original on October 11, 2013. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ a b c d "Au Sable River". Consumers Energy. Archived from the original on September 28, 2011. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
