SEASTONE

SEASTONE 18.04. 1872 New Boston IL/USA 26.09. 1940 Madison WI/USA Charles Victor Seastone obtained the BSc degree in civil engineering in 1895 from University of Illinois, Urbana IL. He was already there interested in water flow, as is shown by his thesis. He was employed then by the Mississippi River Commission in charge of instrument work as assistant hydrographer. He was asked by Arthur N. Talbot (1857-1942) to return to his Alma Mater as his personal assistant in charge of laboratory work. Seastone went in 1900 to Purdue University, West Lafayette IN, as associate professor of sanitary engineering, but gave up his career as a teacher in 1907, despite the excellent records. From 1898, Seastone served as assistant engineer Daniel W. Mead (1862-1948) on the reconstruction of the Rock Island Reservoir IL. This contact led later to an association. From 1907 Seastone was again engaged by Mead in his consulting office at Madison WI, entering a partnership in 1913, which lasted until 1933. Seastone was first in charge of the plans of the Kilbourn hydro-electric plant, on the Wisconsin River. In 1908, the Madison office under Seastone began plans for a hydro-electric plant at High Falls on the Peshtigo River WI, which was highly different from the previous installation. In 1911 work on the hydro-electric plant on the Wisconsin River upstream of Prairie du Sac started. The river bed there is sandy, 30 m deep, so that both the power house and the 300 m long dam were built on pile foundation. The next important plants included these at Twin Falls on the Menominee River near Iron Mountain MI, or on the Brule River near Florence MI. Many reports were furnished on the water power and water supply developments all over the USA, of which one of the largest possible was the hydroelectric development on the Missouri River for South Dakota at five successive locations within the State. One of the most interesting design was that on the Elwha River on the Olympic Peninsula WA. Seastone was credited for a successful completion of projects he was involved; he studied all of its aspects with unbiased judgment. He was described as kind person, utilizing with the fullest possible credit all sound suggestions that came to him. He was member of the American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE from 1916. Anonymous (1942). Charles V. Seastone. Trans. ASCE 107: 1830-1835. Ketchum, M.S., Seastone, C.V. (1895). Flow of water through siphons. University of Illinois. Mead, D.W., Seastone, C.V. (1917). Report on the dam and water power development near Austin TX. Mead & Seastone, Consulting Engineers: Madison WI. (P) Seastone, C.V. (1899). Measuring tank for a jet meter. The Technograph 14(2): 98-104.