Hennepin, IL: 1953-2017 306mw Hennepin Power Plant and Washington Mills

Power: (Satellite)

Mill: (Satellite)

"Plant Nameplate Capacity: 306.3 MW (Megawatts)   Units and In-Service Dates: Unit 1: 75.0 MW (1953), Unit 2: 231.3 MW (1959)" This plant closed on Nov 1, 2019. In this case, it was Illinois rather than the EPA that forced the closure. In 2005, the owner agreed to an EPA settlement that "requires installation of four new flue gas desulfurization devices (scrubbers) to control SO2; four new baghouses to control particulate matter (soot); and operation of existing control equipment, including three selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems, year-round to control NOx." [gem]

John Bogatitus posted
Hennepin Power Station (when the lights were still on)
Southeast corner looking towards #2

Calvin Newbaum posted, cropped
Last drive out of Hennepin power station, December of ‘19.

Once again, I save a satellite image because the coal pile and the loaded barges, if not the buildings, will be disappearing.

Satellite

Brian Boers posted five photos with the comment: "Here’s an old plant I used to work at."

[Some comments indicate that the plant received the coal from Wyoming [PRB] using the rail-to-barge transloading at Havana.]

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Nick Anderson: A double flow from both ends inward, two single flows. Straight condensing it looks like. Neat!

5

David Todd commented on Brian's post
Second plant I worked at, 11 years!

EnergyCentral
This plant was closed along with Coffeen, Duck Creek and Havana in order to allow four other plants in Illinois to keep running. (I read that some think some of these plants were cleaner than the some that were left running. But I lost the reference. Did Illinois allow the owner to close plants with more pollution controls because they were a bigger operations and maintenance headache?)

martin-eng

martin-eng
"Air cannons are installed on the new chutes at Hennepin Power Station to prevent blockages."
Even simple sounding stuff like coal chutes can cause problems if not designed properly.

Washington Mills

Bureau County Republican posted
Two firefighters were taken to a Princeton medical center after a three-alarm fire at the Washington Mills facility in Hennepin, where a transformer fire resulted in a three-alarm response.
https://www.shawlocal.com/illinois-valley/2025/08/18/two-firefighters-hospitalized-after-hennepin-mill-fire/
"Three-alarm blaze sparked by transformer; heat-related injuries reported"

shawlocal
"Firefighters work the scene of a third alarm fire on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, at Washington Mills near Hennepin. A Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) call was placed shortly after 11 a.m. Fire departments from La Salle, Bureau and Putnam counties assisted with the fire. (Scott Anderson)"

"Among one of the largest manufacturers of abrasive grain and fused mineral products in the world, Washington Mills offers a rich array of abrasive grains, powders, surface treatments, and specialty fused minerals from its multi-plant locations. The only producer of Brown Fused Alumina, White Fused Alumina, Silicon Carbide, and Boron Carbide crude ore in North America; Washington Mills has the world-wide capability to serve you." [WashingtonMills]