~by Denise O’Brien Van for the Greene County Historical Society
For millennia, the world operated mostly in the daytime. And for Greene County farmers those days of “make hay while the sun shines” lasted until almost the mid-20th century.
Denise O’Brien Van of Jefferson will relate the coming of electricity to local farms at 12:45 pm on Friday, Nov. 1, at the Scranton Methodist Church, 1000 Lincoln St.
The free program is part of the Greene County Historical Society’s program series about local history,
With the passing of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal’s Rural Electrification Act in 1936, agriculture and rural life were transformed. The law allowed the federal government to make low-cost loans to farmers who banded together in non-profit cooperatives to bring electricity to rural America.
Van will discuss the electrification of Greene County, where almost 100 percent of farms were connected to the utility by 1950. She says she welcomes audience participation from those who may have experienced the illumination, or have heard family tales about lighting up the countryside.
The program follows a noon lunch, prepared by members of the church congregation. Cost is $12, all of which goes to the church. To get a seat at the lunch table, call a Historical Society community contact or 515-386-4408 by Tuesday, Oct. 29.
