Weber River power plant was the largest of its kind in the world when it opened; Plus, more history

                        The mouth of Weber Canyon.

                                     The power plant in Weber Canyon.                                                                                                                                                               Photo by LeAnn Arave

RACING down Weber Canyon today at 65 mph, it might be hard to notice, but just east of the mouth of Weber Canyon and two miles west of Devil's Gate is an electrical power plant, in between the four lanes of the freeway. This power plant dates back to 1910 and harnesses the currents of the Weber River to produce electricity.
According to the Deseret Evening News of April 26, 1900, this power plant was proposed that spring. A decade later, in 1910, it became a reality, according to the July 26, 1910 Salt Lake Tribune. The Utah Light and Railway Company constructed the original facility, which was lauded as "the largest of its kind in the world," the story stated. A small dam was constructed a half-mile to east to provide the water for the huge aqueduct.

                     The Devil's Gate area along westbound I-84 in Weber Canyon.

According to the Tribune of June 11, 1908, the power plant cost more than $200,000 (about $5.3 million in today's values). The original plant generated 3,000 horsepower.
The plant has been improved and modernized over the decades. It is now referred to as the Devil's Gate-Weber Hydropower plant and is operated by Rocky Mountain Power today.

                              The Weber River as it travels through Devil's Gate.                       
                                                                                                               Photo by Whitney Arave.

-MORE HISTORY: Fishermen in Weber Canyon were both lazy and destructive. "Dynamiting fish streams. Very sportsmanlike manner of fishing on Weber River" was a July 6, 1910 headline in the Deseret Evening News. Cashier W.H. Shearman of the Merchants Bank in Salt Lake returned from a fishing trip along the Weber River and reported to the newspaper that fishing was poor, thanks to the use of dynamite. Shearman said he heard seven explosions over two days and saw lots of dead fish floating down the stream.  He also said the guilty had "watchers" out to avoid being seen or caught.
-"'Old Glory' won't fly in Hooper tomorrow" was a July 3, 1952 headline in the Ogden Standard-Examiner. Jewel Widdison reported that vandals had cut and torn out the rope on the town's 100-foot flagpole, just a day before the Independence Day holiday. The story stated it requires "an expert climber" to shinny up the pole and retread it, so that won't happen before the holiday. At the same time, possibly the same vandals also smashed out a "costly window" and Richins Market in town. Store owner Theron Richins found that damage. Furthermore, a nearby stop sign was also torn down and stolen the same night from the four-way stop in Hooper.