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The Augusta Canal was originally constructed in 1845 for the three-fold purposes of hydropower power, transportation and water supply for the City of Augusta. The canal originates off the Savannah River in the adjacent Columbia County in Georgia. It was greatly expanded by 1875 to a minimum of 150’ wide and 12’ deep. The first level runs parallel to the Savanah River and only drops 3’ in elevation, compared to the elevation drop in the Savannah River of 53’ thereby creating the head for the operation of hydroelectric plants that provided hydro mechanical power for the textile mills that located along the canal in the 1800s. The fall line (division of the Piedmont and Coastal Plain) extends through the headgates area of the canal which creates the difference in the elevation drop between the

river and the canal. At one point over twenty textile mills and related industrial operations were located on the canal due to the availability of hydro mechanical power to run the various equipment. Today there are only four former textile mills located on the canal (Sibley, King, Enterprise and Sutherland). Sibley, King and Enterprise still have active hydroelectric stations that are operated by the staff of the Augusta Canal Authority. The Authority sells the output from the hydroelectric stations from these sites at a discounted rate to the tenants of the mills and the balance to the Georgia Power grid. This operation constitutes a major portion of the operating budget for the Authority.