Childs-Irving Hydroelectric Project, Childs System, Concrete Flume, Forest Service Road 708/502, Camp Verde, Yavapai County, AZ. Surveyed as HAER AZ-65-J, with a 770-word written history.
“The Concrete Flume, cast in place for 1.6 miles, carried water along one of the less challenging geographic courses of the Childs System.”
Written record, HAER AZ-65-J survey. Machine-read text.
Surveyed by the federal HAER program as HAER AZ-65-J · the record runs 770 words · one of 63 surveyed structures published for this county.
Source document Quoted word for word from HAER AZ-65-J. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.
The Concrete Flume, cast in place for 1.6 miles, carried water along one of the less challenging geographic courses of the Childs System. The choice of concrete--instead of wood of metal, each with multiple joints-resulted in the unexpected efficiency of lower friction on flowing water.
Source document Quoted word for word from HAER AZ-65-J. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.
Between February and November Arizona Public Service (APS) and SWCA Environmental Consultants documented the hydroelectric complex, under guidance of the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER). Project managers Phil Smithers (APS) and Linda Martin (SWCA) coordinated historian Steely, photographer Jessica Maggio, and draftsman Hanson Todachine to complete the HAER documentation. Archives for the Childs-Irving Hydroelectric Project are at APS in Phoenix, Arizona. CHILDS-IRVING HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT, CHILDS SYSTEM: CONCRETE FLUME HAER No.
AZ-65-J (Page 2) Historic and Engineering Context: The Childs-Irving Hydroelectric Project encompassed a unique system-according to engineering historians evaluating the historic complex since 1976-that 1) was constructed with great effort in an extremely remote landscape, 2) captured a natural water source and followed dramatic topography, 3) generated electric power in a remarkably simple and efficient manner, and 4) operated continuously for 95 years.
In addition to its individual significance nationwide, the Childs-Irving Hydroelectric Project is a classic part of Arizona history spanning the century: remote low-grade mining operations sought reliable and less-expensive energy; a combination of investors, entrepreneurs and engineers modified a.natural resource to supply the energy; cutting-edge technology entered a harsh and remote landscape; an isolated labor force merged those with skills learned far away with local residents, including Native Americans with traditional ties to the land; nearby communities soon offered an additional customer base; farmers and irrigation cooperatives became major consumers for their pumps and agricultural machinery; distant metropolitan areas boomed by tapping the energy source; and finally a conservative operational approach to investment and maintenance retained aging technology within a huge modem power grid for many, many years past a reasonable retirement.
Character Defining Attributes Component/Feature No. 19 on National Register form. The flume was constructed of concrete, reinforced with steel mesh and set on a bench excavated into the slopes above Fossil Creek. The concrete flume measured 6 feet across at the bottom and 3.5 feet high on the exterior, with a 6- inch base, and walls varied in thickness from 8 inches at bottom to 4 inches at top. Expansion joints were approximately 100 feet apart. Nearly feet of concrete flume was originally constructed with a gradient of 1 foot to feet. Parts of the concrete flume were replaced with metal flume; however, at least 75 percent of the original concrete flume still existed in Old flume components of flattened steel later served as covers for the flume.
(Effland and Macnider Bibliography Effland, Richard W., and Barbara S. Macnider Childs-Irving Hydroelectric Facilities. National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Washington, Neal, and Linda Martin Childs/Irving Hydroelectric Decommissioning Project, Historic Properties Management Plan Prepared for APS/Generation Engineering. SWCA Environmental Consultants. Flagstaff. CHILDS-IRVING HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT, CHILDS SYSTEM: CONCRETE FLUME HAER No. AZ-65-J (Page 3) Above - concrete flume, APS Photo Library Left - concrete flume. APS Photo Library Additional Bibliography Arizona Public Service (APS) Archives Historic photograph collection. Historic drawings collection. Historic documents collection.
Available through appointment at: APS, P.O. Box Phoenix, Arizona CHILDS-IRVING HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT, CHILDS SYSTEM: CONCRETE FLUME HAER No. AZ-65-J (Page 4) Drawing "Removable Forms for Reinforced Concrete Flume No. CHILDS-IRVING HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT HAER NO.AZ-65-J '- ~ ~ !!I ~ q:: ~ ~ '-~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~~- -~ 'lei l ~ . ~~ ,__ I -~ ~ r- s -~ .. ~ ~ "i~ -~ I~ ~~ -~ ~ ~ J~ ~~ 1-- -~ '? ~ ~ !S ~~~ h' t l \S ~ ~ ~ to; ~ ~- 'I i I ... - i ~. l~ ~ ~ ~-----i-1.~ . ~ . !\! ~ .. - -- -- - J ~ .
| Camp Verde, Arizona | The place record: every map, photograph and survey of this town. |
| Yavapai County, Arizona | 336 topographic sheets across the county. |
| Library of Congress record | The original filed report as the survey filed it. |
The federal surveyors worked through Camp Verde building by building. These are the other structures they measured and filed a report on, longest report first.
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