Browse Items (22 total)
High Voltage Research LaboratoryIn 1923, Caltech and the Southern California Edison Company built the High Voltage Research Laboratory, the first university laboratory in the world…
Millikan-Sorensen Vacuum SwitchTransmission of power is dangerous when high voltage drives immense amounts of current. When Big Creek finished construction, ultra-high voltage (up…
Diagrammatic Elevation Profile Map of Big CreekInspired and motivated by the droughts of southern California and the need for clean energy in the early 20th century, the Big Creek Hydroelectric…
Eagle Rock Substation Looking NorthThe Eagle Rock Substation was the endpoint of the transmission lines stretching from the Big Creek to Los Angeles, initially spanning 240 miles and…
Investigation of Transformer Burn Outs at Kern SubstationThis report describes Professor Sorensen’s experiments on the Kern substation, owned by Pacific Light and Power (PL&P). Sorensen was a Consulting…
Theodore von Karman trip to Hoover DamThis photograph captures Theodore von Kármán and Raymond Sanger (unknown involvement) during a 1933 visit to Hoover Dam while it was still under…
Charles C. Lauritsen and Robert A. Millikan Standing Atop the Million Volt X-ray TubeThis photograph shows a defining moment in the early shape of physics research and study at Caltech: Charles C. Lauritsen and Robert A. Millikan…
Birdseye View Plan of 18 Powerhouses at Big CreekStarting in October 1900, John Eastwood was set on creating a power plant in the upper San Joaquin River and created Mammoth Power Company (Jackson…
High Voltage Laboratory Lease Between Southern California Edison and CaltechThis lease contract between SCE and Caltech describes the terms for the High Voltage Lab, which marks the most direct collaboration between Caltech…
Letter From Westinghouse Electric to Royal W. SorensonA decade after the Borel plant began operation, electricity requirements in Southern California had grown drastically. To meet the new demands, Henry…