Lester Allan Pelton – The father of hydroelectric power
Lester Allan Pelton – The father of hydroelectric power Lester A. Pelton (1829-1908) - Inventor whose invention paved the way for low-cost hydroelectric power. Pelton was born in Vermilion, Ohio, in 1829. At age 20 he set out by foot to cross the plains and strike it rich. The first fourteen years he spent mining and wasn’t very successful. He moved to Camptonville and turned to carpentry, built homes, a school house, mine structures, and water wheels, eventually becoming a millwright. His interest was in the water wheel and from early 1878 to 1880 he tested 40 types of wheels with different buckets leading to the discovery of the “splitter” type bucket. A contest was held with four other makers of water wheels. His wheel surpassed the second best by 19 percent. Work of this crossed the country and order for his wheel came from everywhere. The Allen Foundry, in Nevada City, California, could not keep up with the orders being received. Pelton want to San Francisco and met with Mr. Brayt