Three Gorges Dam by Chiang Kai-shek, began preliminary work on plans in the Three Gorges. In 1939, Japanese military forces occupied Yichang and surveyed the area. A design, the Otani plan, was completed for the dam in anticipation of a Japanese victory over China. In 1944, the United States Bureau of Reclamation head design engineer, John L. Savage, surveyed the area and drew up a dam proposal for the 'Yangtze River Project'. Some 54 Chinese engineers went to the U.S. for training. The original plans called for the dam to employ a unique method for moving ships; the ships would move into locks
Gorges family members as well as copies of their correspondence. The legal papers are an excellent source of English documents and provide added information on the family's interesting and noble history. Also provided is historical information used to provide background for Mr. Gorges' book. Included are Mr. Gorges' research notes which give some indication of his organization for the book. Although he failed to publish it in his lifetime, his wife had the book published to his specifications in 1944. There are also postcards of country scenes in England and Ireland. The materials deal with the entire history of the family from