Explore History Featured “Early Electricity In Sheridan

On Tuesday, May 13, at The Hub on Smith, The Sheridan Community Land Trust (SCLT) held its Explore History program “Early Electricity in Sheridan County.”

SCLT History Program Manager Kevin Knapp presented a program focusing on electric light in Sheridan and Dayton that preceded the Acme Power Plant which was built in 1910.

Knapp started the talk by giving a little background on what life was like before electric lights. Much of the work people did was during the daylight. Even the government.

The illustration was from an old newspaper.

Coal oil, whale oil and kerosene were also used for lighting before electricity. Even the streetlamps had to be lit by the lamp lighter every evening and they could be candles or gas lamps. In the morning, he would come around and put them out.

Then came the 1892 World’s Fair.

The first electric lights came to Sheridan County in 1893.

In 1909, Dayton became the first town to own their own power plant to electrify the town. There is some controversy, as Basin also claims to be the first town to bring in city-wide electricity.

In 1910, the coal-fired Acme Power Plant was built, which, for many years furnished power for Sheridan and the surrounding area, closing down in 1976.

This program will be repeated on Tuesday, May 20, from 10:30 a.m. to 12 noon., at the TRVCC in Dayton.

SCLT Explore History is free to attend and open to all.

For more information, visit

https://sheridanclt.org/events.