Born: 1849, Guilford, CT Died 1933 Hingham, MA
Arthur De Wint Foote was born in Guilford, Connecticut, and attended the Sheffield Scientific School of Yale University studying Civil Engineering. Problems with his eyes, later resolved, kept him from completing his Yale education, but he spent a lifetime studying and learning.
Foote traveled extensively, working as an engineer, mine manager, consultant, and surveyor. Working as a mining engineer in the mid- to late-1800’s was very insecure, so he moved frequently to different mines in the American West — in California, Nevada, Colorado, South Dakota, Idaho, and even Mexico. In 1876, while working at the New Almaden Mine in northern California, Foote traveled east to marry Mary Hallock. A few weeks later, his bride joined him in New Almaden.
In Idaho, Foote was intrigued by the topography of the very-arid Boise area, despite being surrounded by two large rivers: the Snake and Boise. He designed a major irrigation system which could bring ample water to the valley and transform it into a major farming and population center. Foote’s plan died due to lack of available funding. However, when the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation built an irrigation system there in the early 1900s, they used Foote’s plans.
Foote was a brilliant engineer and a poor businessman who was often out of work. He thought outside-the-box and designed creative solutions that people said wouldn’t work. At the North Star Mine, he was hired in 1895 by owner James Hague to build a new power plant to provide more power to the expanding mine. The new power system not only had to generate much more power, but it also had to replace the customary burning of wood to generate steam. There were so many mines operating in the Grass Valley area that most of the trees had been cut down. Foote designed a system with the largest Pelton wheel ever built.
But Foote’s interests went beyond engineering. He was an accomplished horticulturalist and designed many acres of Edwardian landscaping around North Star House. He was also an accomplished photographer. His son, Arthur B. Foote, who succeeded A.D. Foote as mine superintendent, also took up photography and the two built a darkroom in the house. Their photographs have been a valuable resource in restoring North Star House to its original design and elegance.
