News & Articles on History of Wind Power
This page was prompted by a technical question about early electricity-generating wind turbines in the United States. The question followed a similar question about “who was the first” to interconnect a wind turbine with an electricity network. There is a lot of confusion internationally about both subjects.
The history of wind energy is a broad subject and many have written about it. I’ve pulled together a list of sources, books, links, and museums that I know about. This list is far from comprehensive. If anyone wants to add to this list or edit this list, please do so.
A number of the entries below are reviews I’ve written of books that include the history of wind energy. The original book can usually be reached from the review. Other news items are relevant to the history of wind turbine development.
1984 Films of Fayette Wind Turbines by Thomas Braise
By
Paul Gipe
In the fall of 1984 California photographer Thomas Braise filmed Fayette Manufacturing’s wind turbines in the Altamont Pass. Braise was …
Cascade Community Wind Company?
By
Paul Gipe
As part of my continuing project to document early wind projects, I am seeking information on the Cascade Community Wind …
What was the Diameter of Charles Brush’s Wind Dynamo?
By
Paul Gipe
Historian Robert Righter and others have noted that the diameter of Charles Brush’s wind dynamo was 56 feet or about …
Charles Brush: America’s Wind Power Pioneer–a Podcast
By
External Source
Henry Sanderson’s first podcast of An Electric Revolution is on Charles Brush: America’s Wind Power Pioneer. In 1888, a tall …
Charles Brush and Some Notes on Early Wind Turbine Development
By
Paul Gipe
In preparation for an interview with British journalist Henry Sanderson about the significance of Charles Brush’s windmill in Cleveland, Ohio …
DAF-Indal: The Canadian Darrieus
By
Paul Gipe
DAF-Indal[1] began working with Canada’s National Research Council and provincial utilities to develop Darrieus wind turbines using Canada’s abundant aluminum in the mid 1970s.[2] They constructed about a dozen small prototype Darrieus turbines less than 5 meters in diameter and about 9 meters tall in the mid to late 1970s, rated variously from 4 kW to 12 kW.[3] One was installed in the Arctic for Canada’s Defence Research Establishment.[4] Another was installed in Texas at the USDA’s Bushland Experiment Station in a wind-assisted pumping test. Another was installed on Block Island, Rhode Island.[5] One was still standing—inoperative–outside Toronto in 2007.[6]
