The water was carried in a pipe under the sandy lane and into the building, where large blocks of ice were produced in metal sleeves, using the electricity generated there. Ocracoke Power & Light Plant (looking northwest):Īccording to Captain Rudy Austin, as reported by Pat Garber, “water was pumped from a shed and cisterns on the other side of the road. Now ice could be produced locally, on demand. Previously, ice had to be brought to the island in the holds of the freight boat Bessie Virginia or the mailboat Aleta. In 1937 ice was a highly important commodity sought by homeowners, businesses, and fishermen. The wood and concrete block structure housed not only the island’s two new 60KW Worthington generators, used to provide electric power for domestic and business lights and newly introduced appliances, but also an ice-making plant. In May, 1937, the utility, now known as Ocracoke Power and Light Company, secured an REA loan for construction of a new facility near the Community Store (today the building houses Kitty Hawk Kites and an ice cream stand). This generator provided the first publicly available electricity to the Island. The two-story Wahab Village Hotel (now Blackbeard’s Lodge) also housed a massive generator recovered from a cruise vessel sunk off the coast. (Stanley) Wahab, built the first modern hotel on Ocracoke Island. However, Ocracoke’s small population and the physical isolation of the village presented problems not found in most other rural areas. Although farming communities were the primary focus of the program, Ocracoke residents immediately understood the potential benefits for the island. The REA was charged with administering loan programs for the electrification of rural areas. Three years later it was reorganized as a division of the U.S. The REA was authorized by the United States Congress in 1936. Roosevelt issued an executive order to create the Rural Electrification Administration (REA), an independent federal bureau. The following account relies on Heidi Smith’s presentation, the author’s personal recollections, and various other sources. On March 15, 2016, Heidi Smith, Manager of Economic Development for Tideland Electric Membership Corporation, presented a history of the electrification of Ocracoke Island to members of the Ocracoke Preservation Society.
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