{"nrhp_refnum":"75001212","name":"Adams Power Plant Transformer House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Buffalo Ave. near Portage Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Niagara Falls","county":"Niagara County","state":"NY","lat":43.08197241150006,"lon":-79.04268153202555,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-06-11","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1983-05-04","areas_of_significance":["Industry","Engineering","Literature","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-story stone transformer house on Buffalo Avenue near Portage Road in Niagara Falls, New York, built in 1895 to designs by McKim, Mead, and White. It is the only surviving building of the three-structure Adams Power Plant complex.","why_significant":"The building is presented as a landmark in the history of electric power transmission, where the experimental alternating current system first proved successful for sending cheap power over long distances. It is also notable as an industrial commission by McKim, Mead, and White, who drew on Richardsonian stonework rather than their usual Roman and French forms. The Niagara Falls Power Company that built it helped drive industrial growth in the Niagara Falls area.","narrative":"Standing on a riverfront site off Buffalo Avenue in Niagara Falls, this one-story stone building is the last remnant of the Adams Power Plant, designed by McKim, Mead, and White and begun in 1895. Two larger power stations that once flanked a power canal were demolished in 1965, and the canal has since been filled in. The long, narrow transformer house has a gable roof, pedimented ends, belt courses, arched windows set between pilasters, and a heavy stone cornice, blending classical symmetry with Richardsonian solidity. Inside is one large open space, now holding three pairs of 1930s motors and generators that still produce power. Its importance lies in electrical history: here an experimental alternating current system proved that inexpensive power could be transmitted over long distances. The Niagara Falls Power Company, which built the complex, spurred industrial growth in the region and advanced electrical engineering in the United States and abroad.","period_of_significance":"1895","architect_builder":"McKim, Mead, & White","architectural_style":"Classical symmetry combined with Richardsonian massiveness (rusticated stone)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed in good condition and still used as a transformer room to generate power under a lease; the two larger power stations were demolished in 1965.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:39.230153-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/75001212.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001212/c669dfc25d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001212/c669dfc25d-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Unknown authorUnknown author","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AdamsPowerPlant_DateUnknown_HABS_15_GeneralViewFromSoutheast_cropped.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Unknown authorUnknown author</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AdamsPowerPlant_DateUnknown_HABS_15_GeneralViewFromSoutheast_cropped.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75320080","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adams_Power_Plant_Transformer_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4680392"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/niagara-county/adams-power-plant-transformer-house-75001212/"}