POWERGRAMS

This year marks a special milestone for Alabama Power as the company celebrates the first century of operation for its first dam. The dam at Lock 12 went into service in 1914 and company officials later named it Lay Dam in honor of Alabama Power founder William Patrick Lay. Environmental Compliance Engineer Bill Gardner hopes to honor and preserve the history and memories of the building of the dam and life at the company village at Lay Dam. He has been working to meet FERC hydro license requirements to document the historic properties along the Coosa River, including the company village. Gardner said they "want to illustrate the vibrancy of the village and encompass the lives of the workers and families that lived there." Throughout the past year, Gardner has studied maps and sketches to identify where buildings and homes were located, researched historical documents, managed archaeological testing throughout the site, and interviewed current and past employees to learn more about the dam operations and life in the company village. "While Alabama Power had maps and architectural drawings, it has been the stories and photographs from personal collections that have been crucial in piecing together the history of life in the village," Gardner said. As part of the documentation process, Environmental Compliance and Corporate Archives have been reaching out to current and former employees to obtain photographs, artifacts and stories about Lay Dam and the village. Corporate Archives will preserve the information for future generations. Employees or family members who have information from the early years at Lay Dam should consider sharing it by July 18 by contacting Gardner (wsgardne@southernco.com or 205-257- 4082) or Archivist Bill Tharpe (watharpe@southernco.com or 205-257-2067). Mark your calendars for Aug. 21, when the Archives opens a new exhibition "From Water to Watts – 100 Years at Lay Dam," showcasing the start of Alabama Power's use of hydroelectricity. By Erin Harney HYDRO Company preserves history and memories of Lay Dam 2 Lay Dam went into service in 1914. Inset is page from early Powergrams. Hundreds of employees, their families and public officials attended ceremonies renaming the Lock 12 dam for founder William Patrick Lay on Nov. 23, 1929. ON THE COVER:

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