Islington Electricity Works

Engine by Daniel Adamson and Co. From The Engineer 1896/05/29

The Vestry of Islington was one of the first municipal authorities to establish its own power station.

1893 Islington Metropolitan Borough Council Electricity Undertaking was authorised by an Electric Lighting Order

1894 The design for a power station was prepared by Albert Gay

1894 'ELECTRIC LIGHTING IN ISLINGTON.
INAUGURAL CEREMONY.
At Eden-grove, Holloway, yesterday afternoon, was laid the foundation stone of the central station of the Islington Vestry for the supply of electricity for lighting purposes under a provisional order obtained in 1893. The site joins the Great Northern Railway, and the land was purchased from the railway company at a cost of about £9,000. The central station, which will be built by Messrs. Macfarlane Brothers, from the designs of Mr. A. Hessel Tiltman, is to cost £18,000, and the machinery and plant, including the mains and conduits and public lamps in the compulsory area, will cost £33,000 more. Current will be supplied, it is hoped, by the summer of next year. The system adopted, after long and careful inquiry by the Electric Lighting Committee, is that of a high tension alternating current, with transformers on the premises of the consumers ; and for street arc lighting the same, with commutator transformers at the works of the Ferranti type. Mr. Albert Gay, the electrical engineer of the vestry is superintending the carrying out of the work. Islington Vestry is the third local authority in London that has undertaken the supply of electricity to the public.'

1895 'ISLINGTON ELECTRIC LIGHTING. Yesterday afternoon Mr. Samuel Lambert, the chairman of the Electric Lighting Committee of the Islington Vestry, laid the top stone of the chimney shaft of the electric lighting station at Eden-grove. The journey to the top of the shaft, which is 192 feet high, was performed in a bucket, which was drawn up by a rope through the interior of the shaft. Mr. Lambert was accompanied by the engineer (Mr. Gay), the builder (Mr. McFarlane), and a maple of reporter.. The stone was well and truly laid, and the somewhat perilous journey back to earth was accomplished without mishap.'

1896 The power station at Edengrove, Holloway, was opened in March 1896 with a capacity of 160 kW, supplying single phase a.c.

Initially there were four two-cylinder horizontal compound engines by Daniel Adamson and Co, running at 95 rpm. Two of the engines drove their alternators by ropes, and the other two had flywheel alternators. The rope-driven alternators were made by John Fowler and Co of Leeds, under Mr. Hall's patents, and each had produced 100 kilowatts, 2000 volts, at 375 rpm. Fowler also supplied one of the flywheel alternators. The other was produced by S. Z. de Ferranti. Of the revolving magnet type, it produced 125 kilowatts at 2000 volts when running at 95 rpm. Its exciter was made by the Electric Construction Co. Ferranti also supplied five rectifiers, each consisting of a synchronous self-starting AC motor, fitted with the necessary commutator for rectifying the current required to excite its own field magnets, and also with a special form of commutator required for rectifying the current for the arc lamps.

1896 The Islington Metropolitan Borough Council Electricity Undertaking commenced supply in place of the Vestry.

1906 Description and photo of 1500-kW steam-turbine erected at the Municipal Electric Power Station in Eden-grove, Islington, by Willans and Robinson, of Rugby, under the supervision of the borough electrical engineer, Mr. A. Gay. Designed to run at 1500 rpm. Capable of taking an overload of 25 per cent, for a period of several hours. Steam provided at 150 psi and at a superheat of 60 deg. F. The generator was supplied by Dick, Kerr and Co as sub-contractors to the turbine-builders. It was a single-phase alternator, giving 2000 to 2500 volts, at 50 Hz.

1912 Fire at the Eden Grove station disrupted supplies for a while but there was still sufficient use of gas that many users continued to light their premises

By 1927 the capacity had been increased to 26 MW, still in the same building.

See here for interesting information about the early years of the works.

The 1913/1916 O.S. map here shows what is probably the power station north east of Caledonian Road Railway Station, with the road entrance on Burnard Place, which was off Eden Grove.

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