In 1922, the Tennessee Electric Power Company formed as a result of a merger with several regional power companies. By using hydroelectric power on the different river systems in Tennessee, the Tennessee Electric Power Company helped many rural Tennesseans begin to have electricity for the first time. As a result, a wide variety of products were developed to save people time from their housework and chores. To encourage people in rural areas to want to have electricity in their homes, the Tennessee Electric Power Company held demonstrations and offered promotional booklets that illustrated the benefits of having electricity. Over time, these promotional tactics worked, and gradually the dark Tennessee countryside was lit up by electrical lights.
At the Tennessee State Library and Archives, one of the collections that documents the electrification of rural Tennessee is the Arthur W. Crouch Tennessee Electric Power Company Collection. Most of the material in the collection covers the period from 1922 to 1939. After August 15, 1939, all of the Tennessee Electric Power Company’s properties transferred to the Tennessee Valley Authority. The Tennessee Electric Power Company was progressive, spending large sums of money promoting rural electrification and the use of electric appliances. It laid the firm foundation on which the Tennessee Valley Authority was built.
One of the notable items that reflects the history of the company is a booklet entitled "The Tennessee Electric Power Company" from 1925. It features descriptions and historic photographs of hydroelectric plants in Hales Bar on the Tennessee River, Parksville on the Ocoee River, and Great Falls on the Caney Fork River. The booklet also has information on the transmission lines to various cities and towns in Tennessee. In addition, the booklet has a map that illustrates the transmission system of the Tennessee Electric Power Company during the 1920s.
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| Hydroelectric Power Plant at Hales Bar at the Tennessee River. Arthur W. Crouch Tennessee Electric Power Company Collection, Box 2, Folder 1. Tennessee State Library and Archives |
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| Parksville on Ocoee Hydroelectric Dam. Arthur W. Crouch Tennessee Electric Power Company Collection, Box 2, Folder 1. Tennessee State Library and Archives |
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| Dam and Hydroelectric Dam at Caney Fork River. Arthur W. Crouch Tennessee Electric Power Company Collection, Box 2, Folder 1. Tennessee State Library and Archives |
Another item in the collection, a promotional booklet entitled "Electric Service for Your Farm," was created in 1925. This booklet promoted the benefits of having electricity, including lighting the landscape at night and electrifying the farm home inside. The booklet also features promotions for refrigeration, cooking, heating water, and other types of electrical appliances.
In closing, the items in the Arthur W. Crouch Tennessee Electric Power Company collection serve as material culture evidence of the dramatic transformation that electricity brought to the lives of rural Tennesseans. While electricity and electrical appliances are often taken for granted today, the technology was something new and different for rural people in the 1920s. By having historical resources like these items, it serves as a reminder that even ordinary things like electricity have a history.
For More on the Tennessee Electric Power Company see:
The Tennessee State Library and Archives is a division of the Office of Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett
