Pennsylvania Power & Light Company. Predecessor and subsidiary companies.

Pennsylvania Power & Light traces its origins to the various water and gas light companies that began operating in the eastern part of the state during the mid-nineteenth century. In the late 1870s electricity was introduced to the area and started to compete with gas. The first arc lighting systems were used for street lighting. In the early 1880s, Thomas Edison began building central stations that were designed to bring electricity to individual homes. On July 4, 1883 Edison opened a central station in Sunbury, Pennsylvania and through his agent, Philip B. Shaw of Williamsport, he began licensing local electric companies to use the system.

The early Edison companies which relied on direct current were extremely inefficient. In 1885, however, George Westinghouse developed an alternating current system that could transmit relatively high voltages over long distances. This development made the modern electric utility system possible. By the 1890s it was clear that the Edison companies could not compete and they either went bankrupt or were forced to purchase Westinghouse generating equipment.

Once the Westinghouse Electric Company began marketing its alternating current systems, entrepreneurs found that they could establish electric light companies with relatively modest investments. Hundreds of small operators entered the business. The electrification of anthracite coal mines, street railways, and the exploitation of the Susquehanna River's water power resulted in intense cut-throat competition which bankrupted many operators.

The development of turbines and high-voltage transmission lines during the early years of the twentieth century allowed utilities to centralize their generating distribution facilities. In 1905, when the Lehigh Valley Transit Company installed its first modern turbogenerators, it launched a consolidation movement that, within twenty years, was to integrate the electric industry in eastern Pennsylvania into a unified system.

General Electric, through its subsidiary Electric Bond and Share Company (EBASCO), financed the investment in new generating equipment. In 1920 EBASCO organized the Pennsylvania Power & Light Company which brought together the seven largest utility companies in eastern Pennsylvania. Within five years, PP&L was supplying electricity to more than 400,000 residential and industrial customers in 700 communities.

From the description of Records, 1853-1957. (Hagley Museum & Library). WorldCat record id: 122503413