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The Electrification of America

 J.M. Syken

Course Outline

Through the viewing of archival/documentary films produced in the 1930s/40s/50s, we will examine the processes and affects of providing electricity to urban, suburban and rural areas within the continental United States from the early 1930s through the late 1950s.

Of special interest/focus will be the problems associated with electrifying rural America. We will examine how the Federal Government intervened directly to provide power and light to farms via the formation in 1935 of the Rural Electrification Administration. We’ll also examine how electric power is provided and its importance in daily life.

This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of the course materials.

Learning Objective

At the conclusion of this course, the student will:

Intended Audience

This course is intended for architects, engineers and other design professionals.

Benefit to Attendees

The attendee/s will gain an intimate knowledge and insight into the process by which electrification was brought about in the United states.

Course Introduction

The course incorporates the viewing of several archival/documentary films broken down as follows;

Part 1 examines life on a typical American farm of the 1930s as it existed prior to electrification and after electrification. Part 2 examines the impact of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) on the lives of the three million residents of the Tennessee Valley and electrification via the hydroelectric power TVA dams generated. Part 3 examines the “new frontier” of electric power for industry and the individual. Part 4 examines how a large regional area is supplied with power and light and how service is maintained.

Course Content

Part 1 – Before and After;
TITLE: Power and the Land (1940)
LINK: http://archive.org/details/gov.fdr.352.2a.3
DURATION: 38:08
Part 2 – TVA;
TITLE: Valley of the Tennessee (1944)
LINK: http://archive.org/details/gov.fdr.353.3.3
DURATION: 28:59
Part 3 – Electrified America;
TITLE: The New Frontiers: An Epic of Electrified America (1936)
LINK: http://archive.org/details/6189_New_Frontiers_An_Epic_of_Electrified_America_The_01_00_44_00
DURATION: 16:41
Part 4 – Power and Light;
TITLE: The Power to Serve (1957)
LINK: http://archive.org/details/PowertoS1957
DURATION: 20:57

Course Summary

Few things have been more transformative to human life on planet earth than electrification. Moon shots and flying machines certainly have their place at the top of the list of human achievements, but from an everyday impact perspective, there’s nothing to match the changes that electricity brought about. Reliable light, power for machinery and consumer goods, elevators, computers etc. – the list is literally endless. For rural Americans in the early 20th Century, electricity was akin to manna from heaven, ending a life of drudgery and toil that went unchanged from generation to generation. Farm life was hard enough, with electricity it was made a lot more bearable.

Related Links

For additional technical information related to this subject, please visit the following websites:

http://en.wikipedia.com/wiki/Rural_electrification

http://en.wikipedia.com/wiki/Tennessee_Valley_Authority

Quiz

Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.

DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.