Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant

The Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant, also known as the City of Rochester Municipal Hydro-Electric Plant, is a hydroelectric facility on the Zumbro River in Mazeppa and Zumbro Townships, Wabasha County, Minnesota, United States. The facility consists of a gravity dam and a powerhouse, and the impoundment created is called Lake Zumbro. This dam spans 440 feet (130 m) and is 60 feet (18 m) high, creating a reservoir with about 55 feet (17 m) of hydraulic head.[2] The facility was designed by pioneering hydroelectric engineer Hugh Lincoln Cooper (1865–1937) and was built from 1917 to 1919. It is still operated by its original owner, Rochester Public Utilities (RPU), to supply power to Rochester, Minnesota, 15 miles (24 km) to the south. The Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991 for having state-level significance in the theme of engineering.[3] It was nominated as a representative work of Cooper—one of the nation's leading hydroelectric engineers in the early 20th century—and his only project in his home state of Minnesota.[2]

Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant
The Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant and Dam viewed from the north
LocationOff County Road 21 at north end of Lake Zumbro, Mazeppa Township, Minnesota
Coordinates44°12′46″N 92°28′46″W
Area2 acres (0.81 ha)
Built1917–1919
Built byOmaha Structural Steel Bridge Company
ArchitectHugh Lincoln Cooper
Architectural styleNeoclassical
MPSMinnesota Hydroelectric Generating Facilities MPS
NRHP reference No.91000243[1]
Designated March 14, 1991

On the night of August 24, 2019, a pontoon boat with three people on board went over the dam. They were casting off from the lakeshore after patronizing a business below the dam but got caught on the lip of the spillway. A fourth person jumped off and swam to a buoy, where she yelled for help, while the other three went over the edge in the boat. It lodged right-side-up near the base of the dam, causing the people on board only minor injuries. Firefighters, sheriff's deputies, and civilian boaters rescued all four individuals. The Wabasha County Sheriff's Office ascribed the incident to alcohol and darkness, charging the driver with boating while intoxicated.[4][5]

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. Hess, Jeffrey A. (October 1989). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant". National Park Service. Retrieved 2016-04-02. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. "Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant". Minnesota National Register Properties Database. Minnesota Historical Society. 2009. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
  4. "Sheriff: Alcohol, darkness factors after pontoon goes over Lake Zumbro Dam". KIMT 3 News. 2019-08-26. Retrieved 2019-08-27.
  5. Murphy, Esme (2019-08-26). "Pontoon Driver Could Be Charged After Boating Over Lake Zumbro Dam". WCCO CBS Minnesota. Retrieved 2019-08-27.
Sign on the Lake Zumbro Hydroelectric Generating Plant
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