The tall wind turbine in the backyard of the large house on Cleveland’s Euclid Avenue was an unusual curiosity to most passers-by. It was sixty foot tall, weighed 80,000 pounds and had 144 wooden blades.
It stood in the grounds of a sumptuous mansion owned by the well-off inventor Charles Brush, which was accessed by a long, curving driveway. Euclid Avenue at the time was known as “one of the finest streets in the world.” It was lined with great elms, which shielded the great mansions behind them. “From the avenue, the grounds looked like one of the estates in old England,” one biographer of Brush wrote.
The street would later become known as “millionaires’ row” due to its concentration of wealth. John D. Rockefeller was a neighbour across the street. Brush’s house was unique, however, in Cleveland, because he powered it with wind, storing the electricity in 12 batteries in a basement.
This was enough to power the lights in his home as well as his laboratory, where he carried out his experiments. While windmills had been around for centuries, in 1888 few people understood the potential of wind to generate electricity, since electricity itself was relatively new.
Yet Brush, a businessman, never patented the wind turbine, nor did he seek to start a company to manufacture the device.
In this episode, we dive into Brush's invention and its significance. My guest today is Paul Gipe, a wind power advocate for over four decades.
Paul is the author of several influential books on the wind industry, including Wind Energy for the Rest of Us and Wind Energy Comes of Age. He also runs an excellent website full of information on the wind industry.
Join us as we explore the history of wind power and its evolution with one of the leading experts in the field.
Transcript below:
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