Henry Ford pursued many divergent interests beyond automobile production throughout his life. His lifelong interest in harnessing water to provide power for industrial production led him to experiment with hydroelectric generation on his own Fair Lane estate beginning in 1915. Over the next 30 years, Henry Ford and Ford Motor Company built over seventy hydroelectric power plants around the world, half of which were located in southeastern Michigan. These power plants appealed to Henry Ford for two reasons. First, they provided year-round, high wage employment opportunities for skilled labor in rural areas and second, they provided inexpensive electricity for Ford Motor Company's industrial production. The Rawsonville Power Plant on the Huron River outside Ypsilanti, Michigan, completed in June 1932, provided power for Ford Motor Company's nearby electrical components plant. The power plant produced 2,800-horsepower from a 33-foot water head and generated 2,100 kilowatts from two Leffler turbines. The plant dam created the 1,200-acre Ford Lake with 4,000 acres of land surrounding it set aside for Ford employees to use for personal gardening and small-scale farming. The power plant and dam were donated to the city of Ypsianti in 1969.
From the description of Rawsonville Power Plant construction records series, 1930-1939. (The Henry Ford). WorldCat record id: 85892332
