New Orleans IEEE Section

Celebrating 75 Years

John MeredithRegion 5 History Chair

August 21, 2008New Orleans

Malcolm L. (Mac) Hurstell

1927- 2007

VP of Energy Delivery NOPSI and LP&L (Ret. 1988)

Mac was first Chair of New Orleans

IEEE Section (1964)

Order of Presentation

History as relating to IEEE fields of interest with focus on New Orleans

History of Section Electrical engineering history in New Orleans Availability of additional information (web links)

Presentation of 75th year banner by IEEE Region 5 Director David Pierce

Introduction

New Orleans Section is celebrating its 75th year as an IEEE Section. Section established in 1933 as New Orleans

AIEE Section. New Orleans IRE Section established in 1953. Both societies

merged in 1963 with AIEE/IRE Sections becoming New Orleans IEEE Section.

Origins of New Orleans IEEE Section

AIEE Section established on 12/8/1933 AIEE District 4 32 members Chairman J.M. Todd; Secretary F.E. Johnson

IRE Section established on 11/11/1953 IEEE Section established 7/1/1963

IEEE Region 3 Chairman M.L. Hurstell; Secretary E.S. Dobbs 850 members

Joined Region 5 January 1, 1987

AIEE Information from 1934/1936 Roster

Section Dist. Org.Date

Mbrshp. 1934

Mbrshp. 1936

Dallas 7 5/18/1928 78 87

Denver 6 5/18/1915 130 138

Houston 7 8/7/1928 53 65

Kansas City 7 4/14/1916 138 134

New Orleans 4 12/8/1933 32 44

Oklahoma City 7 2/16/1922 77 110

St. Louis 7 1/14/1903 175 182

San Antonio 7 5/23/1930 40 26

Historic Timeline 1850 - Telegraphic communication established with St.

Louis and New York City 1851 - New Orleans & Jackson RR (outlet northward) 1854 - Southern Pacific RR (outlet westward) 1884 – Hosted World’s Fair called World Cotton Centennial

(beginnings of tourist industry) 1886 – Electric lighting introduced 1890s – Much of city’s mule-drawn streetcars were

electrified 1893 – City passed ordinance for complete and

comprehensive plan for draining city 1896 New Orleans Public Library formed

Historic Timeline (cont’d) 1910s - Engineer/inventor A. Baldwin Wood enacted plan to

drain city using pumps of his own design (Wood Screw pump)

1922 New Orleans Public Service (NOSPI) established as sole provider of electricity and transit service to New Orleans

1922 – WLW commenced broadcasting from Loyola campus

1948 – WDSU-TV went on air Middle South corporate headquarters moved to New

Orleans; changes name to Entergy in 1989

Electrification of New Orleans New Orleans Gas Light Inc. provided gas for lighting in 1820s (origins of

NOPSI) Southwestern Brush Electric Light and Power first company to generate

and distribute electricity (incorporated 6/11/1881) Brush began operating on 1/8/1882 (12 generators and 480 brilliant arc

lamps) Edison Electric Illuminating Company first to provide incandescent lighting

(chartered 8/17/1886) Chaotic years into early 1900s with many companies competing in electric

generating and distribution market; in 1922 city passed ordinance requiring one company (NOPSI)

New company in reality 6 corporations; consolidated as a single corporation in 1926

NOPSI combined with 3 other utilities in region to form Middle South Utilities in 1949; changed name to Entergy in 1989

Entergy merged with Gulf States Utilities on 12/31/1993; NOSPI one of 5 subsidiaries of Entergy

New Orleans Mule Drawn Streetcar, circa 1890s

New Orleans Electric Streetcar, circa 1900

Site of First New Orleans Electric Plant

Single story building on lake side of Dryades opposite Union housed city’s first electric plant. This plant began operation

On January 7, 1882 lighting forty-five 2000-candle power lamps.(reprint photograph from Transit Riders Digest April 20, 1959)

Details About the First Electric Plant

Atlas Corliss steam engine (18 by 41 feet) Flywheel (14,000 pounds) Two steam boilers (5 ½ foot diameter, 13 feet long, 121 flues in each boiler) Generators (“of the largest size”) 45 arc lamps (burned a carbon pencil one foot long, lasted eight hours) Foundation in place for second engine; room for two additional

generators) Brush Electric President, W.A. Bell led “christening” ceremony with

engineer J.M. Powers present. Powers was presented a handsome nickel-plated oil service with the

inscription: “We’ve oft read the Word of God, The child is spoiled to save the rod; therefore take heed and while you toil, Don’t hesitate to use the oil.”

NOPSI advertisement 1930

Drainage of City

Drainage major concern since founding city in early 18th century Original city built on natural levees of Mississippi River; artificial levees

and canals used initially to drain water into lower areas As city grew built more canals and used steam-driven pumps In 1893 city formed Drainage Advisory Board to define better solutions to

drainage problem Work commenced; city hired A.B. Wood who supervised plans and

developed improvements in pumps Wood famous for developing Wood Screw pumps; Wood pumps were very

successful; designed 12 and 14 ft. models Constant speed powered by 6000 volt, 3-phase, 25 Hz synchronous motors

(up to 600/1200 HP, can lift up to 9,600 cps) City’s today has 22 main and 10 underpass pump stations with capacity of

47,500 cfs under peak operating conditions (50 of A.B. Wood’s old pumps are still in service)

Archimedes Screw (click to observe operation)

Interior of Drainage Pumping Station #6 (showing 14’ Wood Screw pumps)

Wood Screw Pump (14 ft. dia. 1929)

WWL History Started broadcasting as a 10 watt station on 833

kHz on March 31, 1922 Located on Loyola campus In 1924 increased power to 100 watts; moved to

1070 kHz After several frequency changes and power

increases ended up with 50 kW (1937) and 870 kHz (1946)

Several historic photographs on Region 5 web community courtesy of Joseph Pollet, WWL Director of Engineering

WWL photos from the past (slide show)

Television Broadcasting

12/18/1948 WDSU-TV commences broadcasting 9/1/1953 WJMR (now WVUE) goes on air 1955 first color broadcast by WDSU-TV 9/7/1957 WWL-TV on air; owned by Loyola

University for many years.

Congratulations

To members of

New Orleans

IEEE Section

on your

75th Anniversary!

Acknowledgements

Donna McClelland – IEEE MGAB staff Dan Toland – IEEE MGAB staff Robert Colburn – IEEE History Center Joseph Pollet – WWL Director of Engineering Don Preston – Region 5 IEEE Treasurer Francis Grosz – Region 5 Charlie Scheffler - Entergy Stephen Bourg – New Orleans Section Chair

New Orleans History Web Links

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drainage_in_New_Orleans  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archimedes'_screw   http://appl003.lsu.edu/cperc/cperc.nsf/$Content/News/$File/Press-release-TPP-pump-12-

16-05.pdf http://web.mst.edu/~rogersda/levees/Ch%204-HISTORY%20OF%20THE%20NEW%20ORL

EANS%20FLOOD%20PROTECTION%20SYSTEM-5-20-06-embedded_figures.pdf 

http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/pao/history/NO_Drainage/NO_Drain_chap4a.pdf  http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/pao/history/NO_Drainage/NO_Drain_chap4c.pdf http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/pao/history/NO_Drainage/NO_Drain_chap5.pdf  http://blog.nola.com/stormwatch/2007/05/no_pump_stations_ready_to_face.html  http://blog.nola.com/times-picayune/2007/05/outage_reveals_pumping_system.html  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumping_station  http://www.collectstocks.com/neworpubseri.html  http://dnr.louisiana.gov/sec/EXECDIV/TECHASMT/electricity/electric_vol1_1994/003b.htm

   

New Orleans History Web Links (cont’d)

http://www.entergy.com/about_entergy/history.aspx  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_New_Orleans  http://dnr.louisiana.gov/sec/EXECDIV/TECHASMT/electricity/electric_vol1_1994/001.htm http://dnr.louisiana.gov/sec/EXECDIV/TECHASMT/electricity/electric_vol1_1994/002.htm http://dnr.louisiana.gov/sec/EXECDIV/TECHASMT/electricity/electric_vol1_1994/003e.htm http://www.bmen.tulane.edu/pdfs/biomedattulane.pdf  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Armstrong_New_Orleans_International_Airport  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streetcars_in_New_Orleans#Historic_lines  http://tulane.edu/about/history.cfm  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulane_University  http://www.uno.edu/history.asp http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWL_(AM)  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWL-TV http://www-sal.cs.uiuc.edu/~friedman/canal/Canal.htm  http://mysite.du.edu/~jcalvert/tel/morse/morse.htm  http://www.atlantic-cable.com/Article/1861ORielly/ http://historywired.si.edu/detail.cfm?ID=324