Hartford Courant, December 18, 1919
REMARKABLE WATERFALL CREATED
DAM AT STEVENSON
BEGINS PRODUCING WITHIN 48 HOURS
A new Connecticut waterfall, remarkable for its scenic effect, was created the past week at Stevenson when water was permitted to pass over the dam at the Connecticut Light & Power Company.
The water behind the structure, which had been purposely held down to a level two feet below the top by the use of sluiceways, rose quickly when the gates were partially closed and, with a trememdous roar dashed over the crest and dropped seventy feet. Not including the major volume sweeping through the sluiceways, about 1,600 cubic feet of water a second were passing over the dam yesterday, the delivery from the Housatonic River being unusually rapid on account of the heavy rains last week.
On the Oxford side of the dam, there is a point where the water rushes over a secondary drop with such force as to leave clear a space large enough for a person to crawl underneath the water. The swirling waters throw off considerable mist as they rush downstream, adding much to the scenic effect from a distance.
As a result of the mammoth project there is now, resting between the beautiful hills of New Haven and Fairfield counties a great ten mile lake, the largest in the state. Covered with ice at present, it promises to afford many possibilities for winter sports.
Two of the three turbines at the power plant are already in use, saving over 300 tons of coal daily, and a third turbine is approaching completion. The dam is already serving a dozen communities with electric current.