Harnessing the Wind

Harnessing the Wind. Forest Home Farms Historic Park. Getting a drink of water in the early 20th century was not as easy as it is today. You couldn’t just turn on a tap. You had to use a windmill to extract groundwater which was then fed into a holding tank. The water flowed by gravity to a cast iron hand pump which was the last step to obtaining that drink of water. Windmills were used all over the American west in the 1900s to pump water for farm animals, household use, and irrigation. At their peak in 1930, an estimated 600,000 wind pumps were in use. The technology has not changed much since then, and similar windmills are still in use today., ”I clearly remember…the tall creaking windmill out in the middle of the barnyard sending its rhythmic whine of gears out over everything.” , – Patricia Durkee, a Boone family relative, remembering the sound of windmills in the 1930s, How a Windmill Works, A windmill harnesses the free and renewable power of the wind and uses that energy to lift underground water to the surface. Two valves work together in an opposing manner to pump water. Power is provided by the windmill motor and transmitted to the plunger through the sucker rod., Water enters through the strainer at the bottom and is drawn upward by the action of the plunger. , Forest Home Farm Historic Park is on the National Register of Historic Places and the California Register of Historical Resources, The City of San Ramon encourages our residents to enjoy this beautiful park in celebration of our historic past. By acquiring, protecting and maintaining this valuable parkland, the City of San Ramon is preserving for current and future generations natural places where people and other living things can thrive.