James Delmage Ross was the superintendent of lighting for Seattle for 28 years and was the first administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration. He was instrumental in developing the Cedar Falls and Skagit River hydroelectric power plants. A self-taught engineer, Ross advocated for public utilities and regional power networks. He also later served as a member of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
1915 flood
Burial site
Bonneville Power Administration
The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is an American federal agency operating in the Pacific Northwest. BPA was created by an act of Congress in 1937 to market electric power from the Bonneville Dam located on the Columbia River and to construct facilities necessary to transmit that power. Congress has since designated Bonneville to be the marketing agent for power from all of the federally owned hydroelectric projects in the Pacific Northwest. Bonneville is one of four regional Federal power marketing agencies within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
Construction of high voltage line
Power pole under construction, 1927
High voltage transmission right-of-way cleared for construction
Linemen installing high-voltage insulators