French Landing Dam and Powerhouse

The French Landing Dam and Powerhouse is a hydroelectric gravity dam and powerhouse crossing the Huron River in Van Buren Charter Township in Wayne County in the state of Michigan. The dam and the powerhouse were completed in 1925 by the Detroit Edison Company on land previously purchased in 1910. The dam and powerhouse were designated as a Michigan State Historic Site on February 18, 1982.[1]

French Landing Dam and Powerhouse
French Landing Dam in March 2019
Location within the state Michigan
Location12100 Haggerty Road
Van Buren Charter Township, Wayne County, Michigan
Coordinates42°12′51″N 83°26′26″W
PurposePower
StatusOperational
Opening date1925 (1925)
Built byDetroit Edison Company
Owner(s)Van Buren Charter Township
Operator(s)STS Hydropower
Dam and spillways
Type of damGravity dam
ImpoundsHuron River
Length180 feet (55.8 m)
Width (crest)890 feet (271 m)
Reservoir
CreatesBelleville Lake
Total capacity1,270 acres (5.1 sq km)
Michigan State Historic Site marker

The French Landing Dam is about 28 miles (45 km) from the river mouth at Lake Erie. It is the second-to-last of the 17 dams along the 130-mile-long (210 km) Huron River, approximately 7.9 miles (12.7 km) downstream from the Ford Lake Dam and 18.4 miles upstream from the Flat Rock Dam.[2] When the dam was completed, the resulting reservoir created Belleville Lake and subsequently led to the destruction of the village of Rawsonville.[3][4]

When completed, the powerhouse had a hydroelectric generating capacity of 12.7 kilowatt hours.[1] The powerhouse was decommissioned in 1962. In 1981, the property was donated to the township, restored, and put back into service in 1988 and is still operational.[2] The powerhouse currently has a capacity of 1.7 MW.[5] The powerhouse facility and the dam are off limits to the public, but the surrounding area along Haggerty Road has been organized as the French Landing Park, which is a popular destination for picnickers and shore fishermen.[6]

References
  1. MichMarkers.com (2019). "French Landing Dam and Powerhouse". Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  2. Huron River Dams Network (November 2015). "FRENCH LANDING DAM" (PDF). Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  3. Only In Your State (July 14, 2016). "Most People Have No Idea There's An Underwater Ghost Town Hiding In Michigan". Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  4. Bingham, Emily (October 26, 2016). "These 11 Michigan ghost towns are eerily intriguing". MLive.com. Mlive Media Group. p. 3. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  5. Inventory of Power Plants in the United States as of January 1, 1998, United States. Energy Information Administration. Office of Coal, Nuclear, Electric and Alternate Fuels, 1998
  6. Van Buren Township (2003). "Van Buren Township Parks". Retrieved January 11, 2019.
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