Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic history, and economic development, usually applies to a region or national economy. Broadly speaking, electrification was the build-out of the electricity generation and electric power distribution systems that occurred in Britain, the United States, and other now-developed countries from the mid-1880s until around 1950 and is still in progress in rural areas in some developing countries. This included the transition in manufacturing from line shaft and belt drive using steam engines and water power to electric motors.
The Edison Illuminating Company was established by Thomas Edison on December 17, 1880, to construct electrical generating stations, initially in New York City. The company was the prototype for other local illuminating companies that were established in the United States during the 1880s.
The Fisk Generating Station, also known as Fisk Street Generating Station or Fisk Station is an inactive medium-size, coal-fired electric generating station located at 1111 West Cermak Road in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. It is sited near the south branch of the Chicago River to provide access to water for steam and barge traffic for coal, but closed in 2012.
The East Troy Electric Railroad is an interurban heritage railroad owned and operated by the East Troy Railroad Museum. Passenger excursions run on a 7-mile (11 km) stretch of track from East Troy, Wisconsin to Mukwonago, Wisconsin.
A pulverized coal-fired boiler is an industrial or utility boiler that generates thermal energy by burning pulverized coal that is blown into the firebox.
WEC Energy Group Inc., based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, provides electricity and natural gas to 4.4 million customers across four states. The company operates through its brands – We Energies, Wisconsin Public Service, Peoples Gas, North Shore Gas, Michigan Gas Utilities, Minnesota Energy Resources and Upper Michigan Energy Resources.
SS Badger is a passenger and vehicle ferry in the United States that has been in service on Lake Michigan since 1953. Currently, the ship shuttles between Ludington, Michigan, and Manitowoc, Wisconsin, a distance of 62 miles (100 km), connecting U.S. Highway 10 (US 10) between those two cities. It is the last coal-fired passenger vessel operating on the Great Lakes, and was designated a National Historic Landmark on January 20, 2016.
The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company, also referred to as the Milwaukee Interurban Lines or TMER&L, is a defunct railroad that operated in and around Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was the largest electric railway and electric utility system in Wisconsin, and combined several of the earlier horsecar, steam dummy, and streetcar lines into one system. Its Milwaukee streetcar lines soon ran on most major streets and served most areas of the city. The interurban lines reached throughout southeastern Wisconsin. TMER&L also operated the streetcar lines in Appleton, Kenosha, and Racine, as well as its own switching operations at the Port Washington and Lakeside power plants.
John Irvin Beggs was an American businessman. He was associated closely with the electric utility boom under Thomas Edison. He was also associated with Milwaukee, St. Louis, Missouri and other regional rail and interurban trolley systems. Beggs is also known for developing modern depreciation techniques for business accounting and for being one of the early directors of what became General Electric.
James Nobel Landis was an American power engineer, at the Brooklyn Edison Company, and later the Bechtel Corporation. He is known as a founding member of the National Academy of Engineering, and as president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in the year 1958-59.
The Hearthstone Historic House Museum is a historic home in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States that has been converted into a museum. On September 30, 1882, it became the first residence in the US powered by a centrally located hydroelectric station using the Edison system. At that time, the house was the residence of Henry James Rogers, a paper company executive and entrepreneur. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 1974. The house was previously known as the Henry J. Rogers House.
The Vulcan Street Plant was the first Edison hydroelectric central station. The plant was built on the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin, and put into operation on September 30, 1882. According to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Vulcan Street plant is considered to be "the first hydro-electric central station to serve a system of private and commercial customers in North America". It is a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark and an IEEE milestone.
The Georgetown Steam Plant, located in the Georgetown neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, was constructed in 1906 for the Seattle Electric Company to provide power for Seattle, notably for streetcars.
Mohave Power Station was a 1580 megawatt electric (MWe) coal-fired power plant located in Laughlin, Nevada. Southern California Edison is the majority owner of the plant and was its operator. The plant entered commercial operation in 1971. A steam line that ran near the plant's control room and cafeteria ruptured on June 9, 1985, fatally scalding six and injuring ten more. In 2005, the plant was shut down and was later dismantled.
Neptune Bank Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated on the River Tyne at Wallsend near Newcastle upon Tyne. Commissioned in 1901 by the Newcastle upon Tyne Electric Supply Company, the station was the first in the world to provide electricity for purposes other than domestic and street lighting. It was also the first in the world to generate electricity using three-phase electrical power distribution at a voltage of 5,500 volts.
The Pratt Street Power Plant — also known as the Pier Four Power Plant, The Power Plant, "Pratt Street Toenail", and Pratt Street Station — is a historic former power plant located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland, USA. It has undergone significant repurposing development since retirement and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.
The Tejo Power Station was a thermoelectric power plant owned by the Companhias Reunidas de Gás e Electricidade, which supplied power to the city and entire Lisbon region.
Frederick L. (Fred) Dornbrook was an American mechanical engineer and inventor, who was chief engineer of the Power Plants of the Wisconsin Electric Power Company, now part of WEC Energy Group. He was especially known as pioneer in the use of pulverized coal, and in 1949 was awarded the ASME Medal.
Clarence Floyd Hirshfeld was an American electrical, mechanical and consulting engineer, educator, chief of research for the Detroit Edison Co., now DTE Electric Company, author, and inventor, who was awarded the John Fritz Medal posthumous in 1940.
Edwin Burnley Powell was an American mechanical and consulting engineer. He was awarded the 1954 ASME Medal for many years of consulting engineer. The ASME had argued, that in these days he was "probably the most widely consulted engineer in the public-utility field."
