En ee ne a 7 320 CHAPTER LVII LIGHTS AND TELEPHONES ECATUR, like other cities, had its first sight of an electric light when the Barnum & Bailey circus visited the city, about 1880, one of the big hits of the circus. city was one of the pioneers in the introduction of electricity, Tt not only was the first in having electric street cars, but was among the first to have electric lights. In the early ’80s the use of electricity was largely experimental for several years, but it was such a novelty that folks were willing to experiment. “At last the electric light has made its appearance in Decatur,” said a newspaper item Jan. 14, 1883. “Credit for its introduction belongs to Orendorff and Doyle and Sullivan of the Commercial block, For several days an expert has been in the city setting up the gener- ator and making the necessary connections with the lamp which was placed in the Sullivan saloon. Trial was made last night and every- thing worked splendidly. The light was very brilliant, making the gas jets appear as sickly as a tallow candle in comparison, Each lamp costs $60. The generator costs $600.” F A Fuller generator, operated by a Chicago expert, was used. A three horse power machine was manipulated by Fred Litterer. The | newspapers stressed the fact that the light could be seen for a distance . | } of six blocks, and a great crowd of people was there all evening to view the novel illumination, Mr. Doyle stated that it was his inten- tion to make the electric light in the Commercial block a permanent thing The Commercial block is still standing, the block east of Short, a on the north side of Eldorado, In 1883 the Decatur Electric Light Co. got a franchise, and a plant was installed by the Fort Wayne Jenney Electric company in a one-story building on Wabash avenue. Only are lights were used then. A few were installed in stores, but they were noisy, difficult to regulate, and uncertain. S. T. Trowbridge was president and J, R. Mosser secretary of the Decatur Electric Light company. Its franchise was granted Oct. 1, 1883. The office was at the Trowbridge home, 207 West William. Dr. Trowbridge leased the building on Wabash avenue for the plant a.LIGHTS AND TELEPHONES 321 A fifty horse power engine was installed. Wires were run along the railroad east, and on North Franklin street south to the city park. In October Kaufman and Bachrach arranged for a demonstration of Brush electric light, other business men joining them. “The time is near at hand when our people will demand the electric light”, they said In reporting the demonstration a newspaper said: Establishments of Kaufman & Bachrach, O. E. Curtis & Com- pany, L. L. Ferriss & Co., Louis Fleury, were brightly lighted by the new process. The generative machine was installed in H. W. Hill’s place, Main and Church streets. The lamp at Fleury’s lit up the old square for a considerable distance. Inside, the two are lights made the room light as day.” At Cheap Charley’s (Kaufman & Bachrach) there was one light inside and another outside. ~ This demonstration continued until after a fair in the tabernacle, and the light was used in the tabernacle. It gave promoters of the fair an added attraction. “More music and more electric light tonight,” they advertised. Merchants also advertised the novelty. “The Newest Thing in Light” was the way Otto Curtis headed his jewelry store ad. For a time it appeared as if Dr. Trowbridge’s company were going to have opposition, for another company was formed and was granted a right of way through the streets. Incorporation papers were issued in October to the Citizens Electric Light and Power company, capital stock $25,000. Incorporators were John Ullrich, James Millikin, H. Shlaudeman, W. C. Johns, C. P. Housum, W. F. Busher, and W. L. Oakes. This company, however, later gave up the field to Dr. Trow~ bridge, who was getting his plant ready for operation. J. M. Clokey took over the Wabash avenue plant in 1884 and ran it for two years.* If name had had anything to do with it, the business should have been a success, for it was conducted under the imposing title of the Decatur Jenney Electric Light and Power company. However, Mr. Clokey was kept busy answering protests from cus- tomers whose lights wouldn’t function properly, and he breathed a sigh of relief when in about two years he had the opportunity to sell out the plant to the Decatur Gas Light and Coke company, which afterwards became the Decatur Gas and Electric company. By 1885 electricity was being experimented with for street light- ing, and again Decatur was ready to get in the front row in installHISTORY OF MACON COUNTY 322 Danville, which, according to report, was eae tdone by sees it. Not to be outdone by Decatur prepared to do likewise, preparing to erect light towers, : made Oct. 17, 1885, with the Fort Wayne Jenney Electric company to install eight steel electric light towers, 125 feet high, and the equipment to run them. These towers were Placed at ats about the city, and at the time lighted up the entire (On each tower were five lamps. The lights in these towers were the first time Feb. 21, 1886. Decatur was one of very to have such lights, and visitors to the city, as well as seal citizens, considered them a wonder” The equipment for run- ning the lights was installed at the waterworks. For the installation and equipment the city paid $19,034.76. Contract was of these tc As the city grew there was demand from outlying streets for lights. To meet the demand, one light was taken off each tower, and these single lights were installed at outlying street intersections. Later another light was taken from each tower for the same purpose, leaving only three lamps on the towers. As time went on these became unsatisfactory, and the drop lights at street corners were more and more in demand. By 1895 the city had more than 100 are lights on the streets. Finally, in 1910, the towers were removed, arc lights haying been installed all over the city. In later years the city substituted incandescent lamps for the are lights, completing the change in 1924. Naturally with the introduction of electricity for lighting the city, the old gas lamps, which had done duty since 1868, were removed. ‘There still remain in Decatur today several of the old iron posts which supported the lamps in the days when gas was used and a lamplighter lighted the lamps each night. One is at South Main and Macon, another at North and Union, and a third at William and Mercer streets, Hy 1887 incandescent lights were coming into use. Shlaudeman had set up a small experimental plant at the brewery. That year W. B, Burke was sent to Decatur by the Edison Engineer- ing company of Chicago to install an incandescent light machine at the plant of the Decatur Gas Light and Coke company. He remained in Decatur as superintendent of the plant. It was a “300 light (each 16 candle power) plant”, and was put into operation Feb: 2, 1888 Just by way of comparison, a conservative estimate of incandescents in use in Decatur today is 350,000, many of them much more than 16 candle power. FrankLIGHTS AND TELEPHONE 423 Alter the street car system in Decatur had been electrified, R. F 1 car line's power house on East North street, He was bought out later by the Municipal Electric company, incorporated in 1892, J. H. { started in the light business, installing a generator in the Culver was president of the Municipal Electric company, and associ. ated with him wei E, Gibson and J. M. Willard. This company located a power house at Edward street and the Wabash railroad, and it was in use in 1893. Additions soon wei in the demand for electric current nece: ry, due to increase This company later became the Culver Electric company, and in 1898 it was consolidated with the Decatur Gas Light and Coke com- pany and the Decatur Electric company. The following year its property was purchased by the McKinley interests, which eventually sold to the Ilinois Power and Light corporation. THE TELEPHONE, in 1879 It was another novelty, and as usual citizens were experimenting with this new convenience, Decatur had its first telephone servi Ever since Alexander G. Bell had exhibited his new contraption, called a telephone, in 1876 at the Centennial exposition in Philadelphia, where it had proved to be one of the big attractions (at 5 cents per), people all over the country had been experimenting with this “talkie” business. The small boy with his tin can, covered with tightly stretched skin, and his piece of string, was as busy as his elders Students at Yale university constructed telephone lines from one dor- mitory to another. Lowber Burrows, on his return from a visit to Yale, brought home a telephone instrument and set up a line from his home to the J.B. Bering house a half block away ‘The first real telephone line in Decatur was put up by James W. Haworth connecting the downtown office of the Haworth company, at South Park and Water streets, with the factory on Cerro Gordo street. It was a nine days wonder, but as usual there were skeptic: “What will that fool do next?” scoffed many a bystander as the line was put up Newspaper announcement was made by J. H. Hutchins of the Western Union Telegraph company Aug, 20, 1879, that a telephone ex- change would be established in the near future, It was expected the line would be in operation in thirty days, and subscribers were being secured. In October the installation of the line was completed.