Page 42 - Flathead Beacon // 5.28.14

42 | MAY 28, 2014
REAL ESTATE
FLATHEADBEACON.COM

LANDMARKS
Bridge Street, Bigfork
The Bigfork Plant

lowing down the river.
By JAIX CHAIX
However, many things changed since then. Tin-

kel sold his original enterprise and it would exchange For some, visiting the quaint shops along Electric
hands many times over the years. And the original Avenue in Bigfork is like taking a step back in time. But
hydro-plant he built is long gone and it was taken crossing over the old steel bridge along the aptly named
down, re-assembled, upgraded and re-engineered sev- Bridge Street can lead to a step further back in time.
eral times over the last century.
– a time when the infrastructure we take for granted
Today, a more modern facility stands at a near- today, once shaped the ways of life of yesterday. And a
by spot along the river. Although the “Bigfork Plant” time when things like bridges, electricity and running

has seen many upgrades, such as the towering lumes water deined the development of a town or place.
above, the plant still runs on two 1700 kilowatt units Plans for Bigfork were made in 1901 and the town
that were installed in 1924. Although nowadays, in- was platted by Everit Sliter in 1902 (although he had
stead of electricity running along makeshift power homesteaded and started establishing orchards in the
lines along Electric Avenue, the more than four mega- area as far back as 1892).
watts of electricity produced at the Bigfork Plant are In 1901, about the same time Sliter was establishing PHOTO BY JAIX CHAIX
fed into the PaciiCorp grid.
the town, another man named Lafayette Tinkel start-
So the next time you walk along Electric Avenue in ed a company to build a hydro-electric power plant, truck traic that would someday follow was unfathom-

Bigfork (or take a light switch for granted), pause for a which could provide the town and the area with elec- able at the time). The notion of using electricity beyond
moment and reminisce about how one man devised a tricity, which was then truly a marvel of modern times.
powering “electric lights” or small machinery was still
way to use water to make electricity – and forge a legacy Tinkel irst established his hydro-electric power something of dream in the minds of those who were
and a landmark in the Flathead Valley.
plant along the Swan River (close to where the current typically labeled “eccentric.”
power plant is located at Sliter Park). His plant began Like other pioneers and visionaries, Tinkel and his
operation in 1902, as water from the river was diverted company contributed greatly to the development of
Jaix Chaix is a writer who appreciates history and to spin his two 180-kilowatt electric turbines and pro- Bigfork. His enterprise began the legacy of hydro-elec-

architecture. You can share ideas and historical facts duce electricity.
tric production along the Swan River (near the “Wild
with him at [email protected] or at Tinkel’s ingenuity is worth a pause to consider.
Mile” as it is known to watersport enthusiasts).
facebook.com/latheadvalleylandmarks. He is also The town of Bigfork was still an idea more or less At the very least, Tinkel’s endeavors provided cause
the author of “Death in the Valley: Odd Tragedies in when he began his eforts. The Steel Bridge over the for the main thoroughfare in Bigfork to be renamed
the Flathead Valley, Montana 1887-1917” available at river wasn’t even in place at the time (it was installed “Electric Avenue.” Indeed, the use of electricity along
DeathInTheValley.com.
about a decade later in 1911 by the A.Y. Bayne & Co of Electric Avenue seemed decadent at the time, and the
Minneapolis – and the weight and frequency of car and
supply of electricity seemed as endless as the water

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THIRD ANNUAL

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VER 53
PARKING LOT GARAGE SALE!
OES
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MAY 31
2290 FARM TO MARKET RD,
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JUST WEST OF KALISPELL
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