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 In 1957 -58 construction of
two lakes , a larger one Lake Madeleine (named after Mrs.
Davidson) and a smaller one Barbo’s (named after Mr.
Davidson’s faithful dog), were undertaken as a flood control,
soil conservation, water storage project, the impoundment water to
be used primarily to run the hydro electric stations.
The Lake, at an elevation
of 2,179 feet ,covers 35 acres and holds 226,000,000 gallons of
water . It is formed by two dams , the larger of which , Lake
Madeleine Dam is 85 feet high , 1,400 feet long , 350 feet thick
at its base and required approximately 300,000 cubic yards of
earth. The smaller dam, or dyke, is 30 feet high and required
40,000 cubic feet if earth.
The power and conservation project began with the construction of a reservoir christened Barbo’s Lake, which was created by a semi-circular dyke containing 75,000 cubic yards of earth, in a pasture abandoned for more than one hundred years. This reservoir serves as an auxiliary water supply for Hopper Pond , which in turn supplies water for the lower number one power house. At the height of operation , giant earth-moving equipment in use included six bulldozers, two 25 yard scrapers and a 15 yard scraper, two sheep’s foot compactors, a truck crane, and two power shovels. Work was pushed rapidly on a two-shift basis, the first shift started at 4:00 am and the second ended at 9:00 pm.
Lake Madeleine fulfilled its flood-control and soil- conservation
objectives very well in the spring of 1958. During the winter of 1957-58, Vermont had a
very heavy snow fall which covered the entire watershed of lake
Madeleine several feet deep. This snow melted quickly during the
period from April 10th to May 10th, producing a flood of water.
But, Lake Madeleine, almost empty as planned , accepted and
retained over 225,000,000 gallons of water that otherwise would
have rushed down Hopper Brook to add to the already overflowing
Battenkill and Green River, its tributary and also captured silt
that would have been carried down stream to to settle out and
spoil fishing and recreation in lower streams. Contact Us: | Email
| Toll House Phone: 802-362-1114 | |
