“Early 20th century camping by young men from Rock Hill…at Rocky Mount”
City Directories and History: The Rock Hill Record reported on April 22, 1907 – “Work has been resumed by Southern Power Co., on the Rocky Creek station, a short distance below Great Falls. More than 200 men are now employed making ready for this big hydro electric development. The development of the 99 Islands on the Broad River moved ahead also, the railroad will soon be completed to move equipment to the site.”
The RH Record reported on Feb. 27, 1908 – “Two train cars of African American laborers passed through Rock Hill Tuesday evening in route to Rocky Creek to work there on the Southern Power Company Development. “
The Rock Hill Record reported on Nov. 16, 1908 – “The Rocky Creek hydro plant will commence operations in early 1909. The Southern Power Company has customers for 21,000 horsepower of the total 32,000 horsepower capacity. “
The Rock Hill Record reported on Dec. 3, 1908 – “The Southern Power Company has secured rights and options along Fishing Creek and the Catawba River and will construct a third plant in the near future. (This is now known as the Nitrolee Dam). The Rocky Creek plant should be operational around March 1st. Flooding last summer washed away part of the work on that dam and opening has been delayed. Work will then move to 99 Islands, where 10% of development work has been completed. When finished there, work will be commenced at the Fishing Creek location on the Catawba River.
The RH Record reported on April 8 and 15, 1909 – “The Rocky Creek Hydro plant is almost completed and most of the workforce is being released. Many have secured positions in Jackson Georgia. Mr. W. Harry Wylie is engaged in getting right of ways for electrical lines from Great Falls to Spartanburg for the Southern Power Company. He will begin erecting lines for the electrical lines soon. The Rocky Creek Creek gates on the dam have been closed it will take at least two days for the large pond the fill. This is the second large plant at Great Falls, both having 40,000 HP. It will provide power to Chester, Spartanburg, Greenville, Lancaster and other places along the lines.”
Stay Connected
Explore history, houses, and stories across S.C. Your membership provides you with updates on regional topics, information on historic research, preservation, and monthly feature articles. But remember R&R wants to hear from you and assist in preserving your own family genealogy and memorabilia.
Visit the Southern Queries – Forum to receive assistance in answering questions, discuss genealogy, and enjoy exploring preservation topics with other members. Also listed are several history and genealogical researchers for hire.
User comments welcome — post at the bottom of this page.
Please enjoy this structure and all those listed in Roots and Recall. But remember each is private property. So view them from a distance or from a public area such as the sidewalk or public road.
Do you have information to share and preserve? Family, school, church, or other older photos and stories are welcome. Send them digitally through the “Share Your Story” link, so they too might be posted on Roots and Recall.
Thanks!
User comments always welcome - please post at the bottom of this page.
Share Your Comments & Feedback: