Nov 13 Talk: How a Novel Water Wheel Harnessed Tidal Flow in the 1890s

A November 13 online talk will reveal details of a novel water wheel that harnessed tidal power 130 years ago in Maine. The wheel, resembling a huge windmill fan, powered a grist mill and fertilizer factory in the little village of Bowdoinham in the late 1800s. This 27-foot-diameter wooden wheel designed by J. M. Kendall was submerged in the tidal Cathance River and drew energy from tidal flow, similar to the way tidal stream generators work today. The associated power train used reversible gearing to operate on both incoming and outgoing tides, producing useable power up to 18 hours a day.

This may be the only photograph of Kendall’s water wheel, which resembles the fan of a windmill. Only the top of the 27-foot wheel is visible above the tidal flow in the Cathance River in Bowdoinham, Maine, in the late 1800s.

The wheel is described in an 1885 issue of The Industrial Journal of Bangor, Maine:

The spokes are wide, and are set in a diagonal position, similar to the fans of a windmill, the water operating on the one as the wind does on the other.

To learn more about Kendall’s wheel, Kendall himself, and current research efforts to uncover more of its details, attend Bud Warren’s presentation via Zoom conferencing on Wednesday, November 13, at 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (UTC: 12 a.m., Thursday, November 14). Bud is a co-founder of Tide Mill Institute and has been researching Kendall and his water wheel for some time with help from other TMI leaders and members.

The talk, “James Madison Kendall’s Wonderful Water Wheel,” is hosted by Friends of Merrymeeting Bay, and is free and open to the public. Register for the event at FOMB.org.

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