Historic American Engineering Record: Crosscut Steam Plant, Tempe, Maricopa County, Arizona

Summary

Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. AZ-20 presents a written historical summary and relevant historical documentation about the construction and use of the Crosscut Steam Plant, which provided the first non-hydroelectric power to Salt River Project customers in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The report contains a narrative description, photographs, drawings, and maps.

The Crosscut Steam Plant facility is located in Tempe, AZ, near Mill Avenue and Washington Street on the north side of the Salt River. Presently, none of the facilities are in use. The plant is still standing, but associated features Indian Pump Ditch and the Indian Bend Pond have been razed.

The steam plant of the Crosscut power facility at Salt River Project, Tempe, Arizona, was an important part of the utility's overall power production system. The building first housed diesel engines, then steam generators, which together provided the first non-hydro power to Salt River Project customers. The diesel portion operated from 1937 until 1949, and the steam portion from 1941 to 1974 . Both diesel and steam operations were important power sources to the communities of the Salt River Valley, including Phoenix, during the second World War and following, when the Valley experienced tremendous business and population growth.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• USDI Bureau of Reclamation, PXAO, Historic American Engineering Records (HAER), Salt River Project, Canals and Power Generation Facilities North of the Salt River   •
• National Archeological Database (NADB)

Keywords

Temporal Coverage

Calendar Date: 1941 to 1974 (operation of steam engines)

Calendar Date: 1912 to 1914 (construction of Crosscut hydro generating plant)

Calendar Date: 1904 to 1937 (early history of power generation in the Salt River Valley and development of Salt River Project)

Calendar Date: 1937 to 1949 (operation of diesel engines)

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Phoenix Area Office

Sponsor(s): USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Phoenix Area Office

Prepared By(s): Salt River Project Archives

Submitted To(s): National Park Service, Western Region

Record Identifiers

Historic American Engineering Record No.(s): AZ-20

NADB document id number(s): 2202219

NADB citation id number(s): 000000166323

Notes

Redaction Note: Sensitive information has been removed from the publicly accessible digital copy of this report. The following sections figures have been redacted:Figures AZ-20-29 to AZ-20-32; AZ-20-B-13 to AZ-20-B-14. Please contact the archaeologist at the USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Phoenix Area Office to obtain a complete digital copy of the report.

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