Service Since 1937

In July of 1937, a new day dawned in better living conditions and a pathway toward progress for thousands of people living in the rural areas of Clarke and Washington counties and surrounding areas.

The newly organized Clarke-Washington Electric Membership Corporation activated its first lines and turned on the electric lights in rural areas, which had long been denied the conveniences of electricity. It was a historic moment in many ways. And it was the climax of several years of hard work by farsighted community leaders in this area.

Less than 10 percent of the rural homes in Alabama had electricity at the time, and the percentage in Clarke and Washington Counties was even lower than the statewide average. Light for reading was supplied by kerosene lamps.

Today’s modern household appliances were unknown to the average rural home and on the farm.

Acting to meet the need for rural electric service across the nation, the federal government took action. On May 11, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order, which created the Rural Electrification Administration. REA, as the new agency was known, would lend power companies low interest money to erect poles, install transformers, and extend the lines into rural areas.

In many cases, they said they could not make a profit for their stockholders by supplying electricity in rural areas where they would have fewer customers per mile of line than in the cities and towns.

First Electric Cooperative in Alabama

And so, rural people formed their own cooperatives and borrowed money from the REA to construct and operate their own power systems. The first of these rural electric cooperatives to be organized in Alabama was Clarke-Washington Electric Membership Corporation.

It was organized March 2, 1936 in Coffeeville, with the following serving as incorporators:

• Joe C. McCorquodale, Sr., of Salipta, President
• Ben Glover, of Leroy, Vice President
• C.R. Myrick, of Coffeeville, Secretary-Treasurer
• R.S. McNeil, of St. Stephens
• H.E. Langlois, of Suggsville

As initial organizational work proceeded to complete the formation of the cooperative, these men making up the first board of trustees met in Coffeeville, and adopted the first bylaws of the corporation.

Clarke-Washington EMC Faces Challenges

Their first challenge was to get people to sign up for membership in the cooperative. During the next few months, these men and other community leaders reunited to help with the project. These leaders traveled the muddy and dusty roads of Clarke and Washington counties talking to people about the cooperative and asking them to pay a $5 membership fee and sign up for electricity. It was a tough job and many people were suspicious of the whole idea and didn’t want to risk $5 in such a venture, but gradually they began to visualize what it would mean to them and interest started picking up.

First REA loan in Alabama
On Sept. 5, 1936, Clarke-Washington EMC received the first Rural Electric Administration loan in the state of Alabama for building rural electric lines. The $65,000 loan enabled the fledgling cooperative to start installing lines and other facilities necessary to begin serving its members. The first pole was set just south of Salipta, near Beckham’s Landing in July of 1937, and soon the first lines were energized.

Clarke-Washington EMC grows rapidly
Initially, the cooperative served just 83 members with 79.2 miles of line, but it began to grow rapidly, and by January of 1938, there were 165 member-customers receiving power from the cooperative.

The cooperative had no headquarters facility, and it was first operated out of the Coffeeville home of C.R. Myrick, the first secretary-treasurer. At a special meeting, June 1, 1938, the board of trustees voted to move the office from Coffeeville to Jackson, because Jackson was a more central location. A building was rented and the records were moved in a shoebox.

World War II arrived and brought a shortage of materials. Through the years of the war, the cooperative struggled to get material to build the lines, which people in the rural areas were clamoring for. After the war ended, an accelerated construction program was accomplished. By 1950, the cooperative was serving 4,956 customers with 1,683 miles of lines.

As it celebrates 89 years of service, Clarke-Washington EMC serves approximately 20,007 meters on some 4,152 miles of line in Clarke and Washington counties and portions of Wilcox and Monroe counties.