Lighting Up the Darkness: Electrification in Ohio, 1879-1945

This thesis argues that electrification in Ohio, which spread from cities to the countryside, required a strong impetus from the Federal Government to reach its ultimate fulfillment. The author attempts to address a lacuna in the scholarship of electrification by providing an original work on the history of electrification in Ohio. This thesis makes use of a “case study” approach to examine the topic in a three-stage analytical framework: urban electrification in Cleveland to address the changes in public perception regarding power and the resulting municipal reform; the transition of Toledo's interurban railways from primarily traction companies to electrical power companies to illustrate the expansion of electrical access beyond the municipality making the issue a state concern; and restriction of Ohio’s utility holding companies and the electrification of Miami and Shelby Counties by the Rural Electrification Administration to examine how firm federal policies succeeded where state and local intervention could not. The case is made here using a synthesis of existing literature on electrification and archival research. The present work concludes that the earliest attempts to expand electrification were made by private enterprise, but private efforts were most successful in cities where higher population densities guaranteed higher profits. Government actions on the part of municipal and state institutions tried to further electrification beyond the areas serviced by private utilities, but they lacked the resources and authority of the federal government.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts (MA)

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

History

Grantor dc:publisher

Bowling Green State University

Year dc:date

2013

Author dc:creator

• Moore, Kevin L.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Grunden, Walter E.

• American History
• Energy
• History
• Modern History
• Science History
• Technology
• Ohio electrification
• U.S. electrification
• rural electrification in Ohio
• Rural Electrification Administration
• Ohio interurbans
• Tom L. Johnson
• US power policy
• Ohio Progressive Era
• interurbans
• Ohio utilities
• rural electric cooperatives
• modern Ohio

Statement dc:rights

• unrestricted
• This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws.

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1363379469

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:bgsu1363379469