The wooden pipe built in 1904 (at left) to convey water to the machines at the Mont-Rolland mill

The eight-foot-diameter pipe conveyed water from the dam to the mill, to power the machines. The force of the water turned a wheel with vanes, which was connected by leather belts to the paper machine and other mobile components, causing them to turn. In 1924, the wooden pipe was replaced by one made of metal (seen at right in the photograph), which remained operational until it was dismantled when the Mont-Rolland mill closed in 1990.