William S. Murray - Namesake for Lake Murray

William S. Murray, a New York engineer that had the final conception plan for Lake Murray and did much of the engineering of the hyrdo project, died on this day 70 years ago in New York City.

CLICK HERE to read the entire obituary in PDF format
(I secured this on a special request to The New York Times - image may not be reproduced)


Mr. Murray was very involved in the early electrification of the United States.  He supervised the first high-tension electrification of a steam railroad; conceived and supervised an early Super-power Plan (mapped the power resources of the entire country); did engineering work on many other early electric generation projects; owned his own engineering firm and served on many important boards.

Portion of William S. Murray Obituary
from The New York Times - January 10, 1942

Several times in the 1800s, there were ideas or proposals to dam the Saluda River in the vicinity of the current Dreher Shoals Dam.  Again, in the early 1900s, several sites were considered for a dam, including a Bear Creek site and also at the Dreher Shoals area.  Finally, around 1925, Mr. Murray's firm, Murray and Flood, was retained to serve as supervisory engineer for the creation of a dam in central South Carolina.  They initially examined an area on the Santee River but found that unworkable.  Their studies found that a massive earthern dam on the Dreher Shoals site (about mid-way between Irmo and Lexington) would create a massive reservoir about 41 miles long and 14 miles wide at its widest point.    The plan was approved on July 8, 1927 by the U.S. Army Chief of Engineers.   Although there were many engineers involved in the massive project, William S. Murray was the most influential.  The South Carolina General Assembly named the new lake, Lake Murray, in Murray's honor.  The project was effectively completed on December 1, 1930 with the first delivery of hydro-electric power to Duke Power Company.

The State Newspaper headline for February 27, 1927: MAMMOTH HYDRO-ELECTRIC DEVELOPMENT TO RISE ON SALUDA RIVER, NEAR COLUMBIA

And, a newspaper report from August 4, 1930 stated that "Lake Murray, as that tremendous storage reservoir is know, was named by an act of the general assembly of the state of South Carolina, in honor of that distinguished engineer, William S. Murray, whose foresight, vision and tireless energy were responsible for the launching of the project."

Note the error in The New York Times obituary of January 10, 1942:
"... and in 1927-30 they engineered hyrdoelectric development of the Saluda River in North Carolina.  This project included the erection of a huge dam, which formed a lake at one point 14 miles wide which the state of North Carolina named Lake Murray in honor of the engineer."   Of course, Lake Murray is in central South Carolina.

Mel Coker on Lake Murray

Mr. Murray's work in the 1920s and early 1930s related to this new hydro-electric power reservoir is greatly  appreciated today.   Last year, Lake Murray was named one of the Top Ten Lakes in the United States for Boating and Living.


Mel Coker
Lake Murray Resident and Realtor
Lake Murray Real Estate
Mel's Lake Murray Website

2012 Real Estate Outlook

RE/MAX 2012 Top 10 Housing Predictions

Dave Liniger, the RE/MAX Chairman and Co-Founder (along with his wife), talks about his Top 10 Predictions for 2012.  He also discusses his ideas on how to speed up the recovery.  Take 3 minutes (and 16 seconds) to watch this interesting video.

CLICK HERE: Dave Liniger's Top 10 Predictions for Real Estate in 2012





Mel Coker
RE/MAX Realtor in Columbia, SC
RE/MAX Metro Associates
Columbia, SC real estate
(803) 223-6214 (office)

Lake Murray: 2012

What's happening at Lake Murray in 2012?


March 22nd - Taste of Lake Murray
The Taste of Lake Murray is the sole fundraiser for the 4th of July Celebration on Lake Murray. Created 7 years ago, this event is designed to help raise the $100,000 necessary to produce the Annual 4th of July Celebration on Lake Murray, including a Boat Parade and 2 fireworks shows.

April 12-15th - FLW Outdoors National Collegiate Championship
FLW College Fishing is the country's largest tournament-fishing competition for college bass clubs.

June - Purple Martins Return to Doolittle Island
North America's first officially designated Purple Martin sanctuary is at Lake Murray! It's also one of the largest roosting sites in America.

June 30th - Lake Murray 4th of July Celebration and Fireworks Show
Annual boat parade and fireworks show - one of the largest in the Southeast!

September 29-30th  - Oakley Big Bass Tour Event
The Oakley Big Bass Tour is the nation’s premier open big bass tournament series designed exclusively for amateur anglers.  The tour is focused on the promotion of bass fishing and bass conservation at the amateur level.

December 1st - Lake Murray's 82nd Birthday!
At 7:00 a.m. on December 1, 1930, the first electric power - 10,000 kilowatts - was delivered to Duke Power Company.  That's the reason Lake Murray was built and born... hydro-electric generation.

Mel Coker
Lake Murray Resident and Realtor
Owner & Webmaster for Lake Murray website and this blog
RE/MAX Metro Associates
Real Estate Website  |  email
(803) 318-2007

 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year 2012 - from Mel Coker at Lake Murray, SC
Barbara and I are bringing in the New Year in Surfside Beach (SC), but, we will be back to Chapin on Monday to watch the Gamecocks play Nebraska in the Capital One bowl on ESPN.

Top New Year's Resolutions

1. Get Fit - Start working out / work out more
2. Save Money / More Responsible with Cash
3. Spend more and better family time
4. Quit smoking
5. Volunteer for community service
6. Eat better - less or no fried food and plenty of fruits/vegetables
7. Lose weight - Yes, Americans are typically too overweight
8. Better work/life balance
9. Get organized
10. Read more
11. Have more fun on Lake Murray

Got your resolutions figured out for 2012?  I've set personal, health/exercise and real estate business goals.

Mel Coker

Lake Murray Historical Map

I had the pleasure to see and meet with Mr. Ed Fetner again today.  Mr. Fetner, now retired, produced the Lake Murray Fishunt map for approximately 48 years. During his career, he worked in aeronautics and aviation related fields during World War II, mapping at the South Carolina Highway Department and finally retiring as the chief structural engineer at Wilbur Smith and Associates.

Mr. Ed Fetner as his Lake Murray home - December 2011

After he and a cousin got lost on Lake Marion in the early 1950's, he produced his first map - Lake Marion. Around 1952, he produced his first Lake Murray map and called his maps Fishunt after that. That map was the very first Lake Murray map produced for sale to the public. An interesting thing... I first met Mr. Fetner in the early 1960's when my father went to his Columbia home to buy an early edition Lake Murray map. He moved to Lake Murray in the early 1970's. Then, I met Mr. Fetner again a few years ago when I bought a supply of Lake Murray maps. He sold his Fishunt map business about 11 years ago.

Through the years, Mr. Fetner personally named a number of islands and prominent points on Lake Murray. He has received numerous recognitions and awards as a historian and cartographer, including Citizen of the Year by the Lake Murray Association.   Writing historical articles has also been a favorite hobby as he has written numerous articles for local newspapers and other publications.

The special map I bought today is the Lake Murray Then and Now historical map.  Want one? You can buy the historical Lake Murray Then and Now print or a framed print at Palmetto Fine Arts in Chapin.

Mel Coker

Lake Murray resident and Realtor
RE/MAX Metro Associates
(803) 223-6214

Merry Christmas!

A belated Merry Christmas!  We were in Cancun for a vacation and arrived back in the USA just two days before Christmas, so I got behind a bit with my blogging.  We had a very nice Christmas and I hope you and your family have had a nice Christmas season as well.




Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!





Barbara and Mel in Cancun - Dec. 20, 2011




Mel, Barbara and Kelly - Christmas Day 2011


Please keep following my blog in the New Year... 2012!   Good stuff is on the way such as real estate reports, new home communities, Columbia news and events, energy savings ideas, an upcoming Mel Coker client/friend event, Lake Murray news and events, vacation ideas and much more.


Mel Coker
Columbia, SC Realtor
RE/MAX Metro Associates
(803) 318-2007
email

Lake Murray Birthday!

I missed this one a few days ago... the date I believe to be Lake Murray's Birthday: December 1st!   Lake Murray is now 81 years old.

The work of clearing the site for the project was started in April 1927. The Saluda Hydroelectric Project was constructed between 1927 and 1930 by the Lexington Water Power Company, which merged in 1943 with South Carolina Electric and Gas Company (SCE&G).  In July 1930, the reservoir reached an elevation of 298.5 feet. 



Popular Mechanics Magazine - May 1931
(click for larger image size)



At 7:00 a.m. on December 1, 1930, the first electric power - 10,000 kilowatts - was delivered to Duke Power Company. Today, SCANA Corporation (parent company for SCE&G) owns Lake Murray and is responsible for the lake. Lake Murray was named for William S. Murray and The Dreher Shoals Dam is named for the Dreher family that owned land in the immediate area where this dam is built.  So, the reason the lake was built, hydro electric production, was achieved on December 1st with the first hydroelectric output, the official beginning of Lake Murray's awesomeness!

When construction was finished on Lake Murray and the Dreher Shoals Dam, Lake Murray was the largest man-made lake in the world for power production purposes and Dreher Shoals Dam was the largest earthern dam in the world.

CLICK HERE for more information on Dreher Shoals Dam and Lake Murray



This year, Lake Murray was named one of the Top Ten Best Lakes in America for living and boating!  Want to live on or near Lake Murray?  Contact Mel Coker (a Lake Murray resident):

(803) 388-8011

email Mel Coker

Visit Mel Coker's website

The Dreher Shoals Dam is approximately 1.5 miles long and 213 feet high.