Arthur De Wint Foote: Inventor & Visionary

Born in Guilford, CT in 1849 – Died in Hingham, MA in 1933

Arthur De Wint Foote was born in Guilford, Connecticut, and pursued Civil Engineering at Yale’s Sheffield Scientific School. Though eye problems forced him to leave before completing his degree, his passion for learning never waned.

Foote spent his career as an engineer, mine manager, consultant, and surveyor, constantly moving between mining operations across the American West—including California, Nevada, Colorado, South Dakota, Idaho, and Mexico. In 1876, while working at the New Almaden Mine in Northern California, he traveled east to marry Mary Hallock. A few weeks later, she joined him in New Almaden, beginning their life together on the frontier.

One of his most visionary projects was an irrigation system for Boise, Idaho. He saw the potential of transforming the arid land into a thriving agricultural region by harnessing the power of the nearby Snake and Boise Rivers. Though his plans went unrealized due to a lack of funding, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation later used his designs when they built their own system in the early 1900s.

Foote was an inventive and brilliant engineer but a poor businessman. His forward-thinking ideas were often dismissed as too radical, yet many proved to be ahead of their time. In 1895, he was hired by James Hague to build a power plant for the North Star Mine in Grass Valley. His design included the world’s largest Pelton wheel, a groundbreaking hydroelectric solution that eliminated the need for burning wood—a crucial innovation in a region where deforestation had become a major issue.

Beyond engineering, Foote was a skilled horticulturist who designed the extensive Edwardian gardens surrounding North Star House. He was also an accomplished photographer, a passion he shared with his son, Arthur B. Foote. Together, they built a darkroom in the house, and their photographs have been instrumental in the ongoing restoration of North Star House, preserving its original grandeur.

Arthur De Wint Foote was a visionary whose legacy endures in both engineering and landscape design. Though his career was marked by financial struggles, his contributions to irrigation, mining, and hydroelectric power left a lasting impact on the development of the American West.