This building is the Six Mile hydro-electric power station. Opened in January 1922, the occasion was marked by a public picnic, performances by Murchison’s town band, speeches and a banquet at the Commercial Hotel in Murchison. The power station fit-out was high quality – the turbine was purchased in Switzerland and the generator came from America. The 80-kilowatt output allowed dairy farmers in the area to replace their steam engines with much simpler electric motors. It also lit farmhouses and the streets of Murchison, and operated for 54 years before being deemed uneconomic. It closed in November 1975.
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
Private collection
by Jock Phillips
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