Electric Power Comes to Fitzwilliam

ABSTRACT

This is the story of how electric power came to Fitzwilliam, NH, as told mainly through the eyes of the Monadnock Breeze, a local weekly newspaper of the time.  It begins soon after the turn of the Century and continues until mid-1916, when an outside company came in and took over the young, growing operation, to consolidate its activities into a larger, regional system.  The story readily resolves itself into two parts:

Part I chronicles the struggle of this small country village to decide that it did, indeed, want electric power and to choose a credible vendor to supply that service.  Several iterations were necessary before these milestones were finally achieved, not until 1911 drew to a close.  Pertinent episodes include: “The Progressive Era?” [1901-1903]; “Mr. Whitney Comes to Town” [1903-1904]; “The Troy and Fitzwilliam Light and Power Company” [1904-1906]; “Who’s ‘On’ First?” [1907]; “A Brief Digression” [1908]; “More Heat Than Light?” [1908-1911]; and “It Takes Two to Tango” [1911].

Part II follows Fitzwilliam from the buildup of its new electrical system, beginning in early 1912, to the 1916 arrival of Derry Electric Company – the final bookend – with a chronological selection of “Snippets of Progress from the Monadnock Breeze” as events unfolded.  While many of these relate directly to electrical matters, others lend a personal and community flavor as the town lives and evolves through this passage of those last “innocent” years leading up to our Nation’s formal entry into World War I.  A brief Epilogue concludes, with two Appendices of reference material related to the Monadnock Breeze and the Troy and Fitzwilliam Light and Power Company, respectively.