Born At A Dance, Alaska’s Oldest Electric Co-Op Is Rewiring Its Fastest-Growing Region
In 1937, the farm families of the Matanuska Valley colony near Palmer, Alaska, wanted electric lights. Dr. C. Earle Albrecht, the colony doctor, wrote to the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) for help. The agency agreed to consider the request, but only if the colony could first provide “an accurate report and survey showing that adequate and constant power can be made available.” To pay for the survey, the community held the Electric Ball at the Palmer community hall under the slogan “Dance your way to electric lights.” The event raised $150, enough to fund an 18-page survey, and the REA approved a $140,000 loan.
