AEC

Rural Electric Cooperatives: Past, Present and Future In the beginning it was dark; there was no light besides the sun, there were no cooperatives, power lines, or night-lights. Can you imagine life without electricity? I can not, nor do I want to. You would not have a refrigerator, hot water, washing machine, dryer, or many other things. Sibyl Jacobs, my grandmother, clearly remembers life without electricity. “We were so excited when we got electricity at …

…The Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation Act, drafted by the REA in 1937, was a model state law for the creation and running of rural electric cooperatives. With the creation of the electric cooperatives came the hope and reality of electricity for rural areas. The farmers who lived off the main highways and away from towns were able to join together for the purpose of electrifying their homes -- making their daily work and lives much easier.