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Renwick Generating Plant

Coordinates: 42°49′43″N 93°58′42″W / 42.82861°N 93.97833°W / 42.82861; -93.97833
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Renwick Generating Plant
Renwick Generating Plant is located in Iowa
Renwick Generating Plant
Renwick Generating Plant is located in the United States
Renwick Generating Plant
Location103 N. Field St.
Renwick, Iowa
Coordinates42°49′43″N 93°58′42″W / 42.82861°N 93.97833°W / 42.82861; -93.97833
Arealess than one acre
Built1915
ArchitectG.L. Long
NRHP reference No.95000099
Added to NRHPFebruary 17, 1995[1]

Renwick Generating Plant, also known as the Municipal Steam Light Plant, is a historical industrial facility located in Renwick, Iowa, United States. G.L. Long was an engineer who was contracted in 1914 to design a steam-powered electrical light plant. It first distributed energy on March 14, 1915, at 6:00 p.m.[2] The steam engines were replaced by a 75-horsepower, two-cylinder, semi-diesel engine and generating equipment manufactured by Fairbanks-Morse in 1922. A 125-horsepower diesel engine manufactured by Worthington Pump and Machinery Corporation was added in 1936. At that time the plant started to supply power to a newly formed rural electric cooperative that was funded by the Rural Electrification Act of 1936. A Faribanks-Morse 300-horsepower, four-cylinder diesel was added in 1939, and the 75-horsepower and 40-horsepower engines were replaced in 1942 by another 300-horsepower diesel. An addition was added onto the north side of the building the same year. It housed the local fire department and city hall. The facility was listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

The plant is a single-story, rectangular building that was built of concrete block manufactured in Renwick. It is a contributing building in the historic district. Contributing structures include the three engines, a transformer substation bank, a cooling tower, a water tower, and a utility shed.[2]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ a b Stanley McCurry. "Renwick Generating Plant" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved January 29, 2016.