A bold effort in Vermont [History

Abstract

This paper is the third biennial issue having wind-produced electrical energy as its theme. As with the earlier two issues, a major focus is the integration of wind power plants into electric utility systems. As such, it is fitting that our history offering describes the Smith-Putnam wind turbine that operated on the summit of Grandpa's Knob, a mountain about 12 mi (19 km) west of Rutland, Vermont, during the early 1940s. Having a capacity of 1.25 MW, it was the world's largest wind turbine at that time and among the first to deliver alternating current (ac) electrical energy into an electric utility transmission and distribution system.