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Smelter Pumping Station

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There is a ruin of a brick structure at the river's edge out past the boat launch.  Dating back to the time of the smelter, what would have been it's purpose so close to the water? Even under water part of the year? It has been the source of much speculation over the years.
As seen in the above photos, there is a foundation approximately 16 ft. by 32 ft. with ends that are round, massive fallen down walls 30 inches thick, beams and long bolts embedded in the floor, a nine inch diameter steel pipe stub and according to a local informant, there was a buried, brick lined tunnel running up the hill at a steep angle.


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The upper photo shows what the area looked like in 1901.  Water was supplied to the smelter by means of a flume beginning at Deep Creek falls and running about two miles to two large storage tanks on the hill behind the smelter. There is a visible trace from the tanks to the general area above and beyond the present day boat launch. This trace follows a pipe visible in the lower 1899 photo. The pipe may have been buried, leaving the trace. There is a pipe on a trestle discharging water into the river, circled in the 1901 photo.  It is believed that this discharge is overflow from the flume for the times when there was more water coming in than the smelter could use.


A news item found in the local newspaper:
The Northport News  May 15, 1901:

THE SMELTER
    The management is engaged at the present time in digging ditches, laying pipes, and putting in a large pumping outfit to the river, so that in the event of the present water system getting out of order or the supply proving inadequate no close down will be necessary for lack of water.



Their concern over water supply was well placed.

from The Nelson Tribune   Nov 23, 1901:
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The Northport  Smelting & Refining Company is in a  fresh difficulty. Its water supply is  threatened by Robert Morrill, owner of  the Northport Electric Company, who  owns Deep creek falls, about a quarter  of a mile above the head of the smelter  company's flume. Mr. Morrill is fresh  from a victory over the Anaconda  smelter of Anaconda, Montana, from  whom he collected $50,000 in a suit over real estate adjoining their plant, and it  is likely he will make things extremely interesting for  the Northport smelter  company. The smelter gets its water  supply and that for the city's system,  which it owns, from Deep creek,  through a flume about a mile and a half  long. Mr. Morrill is building a sawmill  at Deep creek falls and 10 o'clock Monday morning last he found It necessary  to close the gates of his dam. As a consequence the creek went dry and the smelter water gauges began to fall. The  master mechanic  and a number of men went out to the falls and requested  Morrill's men to open the gates of the  dam. This they refused to do. The  smeltermen threatened to demolish the  dam, but Morrill's men refused to be  bluffed and the smelter was compelled  to close down for some time, as the  water was not turned on again until 1  o'clock Monday afternoon. In the meantime two of the furnaces froze up and  some other damage was done to the  plant.  Mr. Morrill's water right was located  prior to that owned by the smelter  company and it seems likely that he will  be able to do pretty much as he likes with water matters until the smelter  company accede to what ever demands  he may make, as the Deep creek water  supply is practically the only one available for the smelter's use unless they  pump their  water from the Columbia  at an enormous expense. The end is  not yet.

The brick structure could have housed this "pumping outfit". The overflow pipe was already in place and could be used to pump river water up to the tanks, the beams and bolts in the floor would have been to mount pumping equipment, and the massive walls and rounded shape would have been necessary to protect the equipment from the pressure of high water on the river.

An item in The Spokane Press March 11, 1905 mentions the engineer of a pumping station for the Northport smelter
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  • Home
    • Smelter Monument
    • Fire House House
    • Cemeteries
  • A History of Northport
  • The Virtual Museum
    • What a Stranger Saw 1901
    • Schools
    • Landmarks >
      • landmarks page 2
      • The Opera House
      • Kendrick Mercantile
      • Smelter Pumping Station
    • Ferries
    • Bridging the Columbia
    • Floods
    • Northport Fires >
      • One More Fire
      • 1898 Fire
      • 1914 fire
      • School Gym
      • New Zealand Hotel fire
    • Northport Smelter 1897-1910 >
      • Washington Geologic Survey 1902
    • Northport Smelter 1916-1921 >
      • Washinton Geological Survey 1921
    • OLD MAPS
    • Waterfalls, Lakes and the Columbia River
    • other resources >
      • Powering Northport 1893-1942
      • Polk Directory 1911-1912
      • Polk Directory 1916-17
      • 1922 Phone Book
  • The Welcome Center Project
    • Newsletter
    • donate
    • history
  • membership application