A short history of hydropower control

Today's control systems have their roots, to a great extent, in the speed control of driving engines (prime movers) and particularly in the speed control of water turbines. The first turbines with automatic speed control appeared sometime in the mid-19th century. I discuss the history of water-turbine control systems, noting the older inventions and techniques that made possible the very first attempts to control the speed of hydraulic machinery and recognizing the key engineers and scientists who contributed to the further development.