We've got the Power! - Ancestors in 52 Weeks

 Another prompt by 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge. It's run by Amy Johnson Crow.

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Week 8's theme is "Power." Does that mean physical strength, political power, power in the family, electrical power? Yes. It's a vague theme on purpose :-) It's whatever the theme sparks in you.

For Amy, it reminds me of my dad's maternal grandmother. When her house was fitted for electrical power, she was nervous that the electricity would come pouring out empty sockets. To her, it made sense that if oil (her previous power source) would physically flow, so would electricity.

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Once again, when I first read the topic for this week, I figured I would do a power play someone in the family did as I know a few ancestors I've been told were the power in the family. However, once I sat back and thought about it (during the time I sat back to rest my eye which I had problems with this past weekend) and thought I knew who and what I'd write about. 

I've written about my great grandfather Joannes Julius Gauquie (1871-1946), also known as Jules Gauquie, before. However, he's the only one of my ancestors who I know when they got the power and telephone on in their farm house. 

It seemed he always wanted people know know how updated he was on things and then splashed them around. To me, he would have been very annoying and I know we wouldn't have gotten along. Because of how well known he made himself, these things were often put in the local newspaper. 

One of the bigger villages (at this point) nearby, Newburgh, was one of the second municipality to get electric. I found one newspaper article which states that it was done on August 8, 1883 and another newspaper article in October 1883 that the company was finishing its incorporation documentation and was scheduled to start on putting up the building for it. Even a newspaper article in 2017 says that it was 1884 Newburgh had electric by the Edison Electric Illuminating Company which then became Newburgh Electric and then Consolidated Gas, Electric Light, Heat and Power company in 1895. 

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Credit : Poughkeepsie Journal

So I would say that it was between August 8, 1883 and November 1883 (in late October the top newspaper article says it should finish the building in a month and estimated a bit of time after that to start up the electric) based upon the above articles. I was shocked when I couldn't seem to find anything on when the electric started as I figured this would be a large write up with how everyone reacted. 

Not that there wasn't problems along the way with having electric in the towns. 

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Like most things back then, there was a risk, a much higher one than today, but they weighed it up and usually went with it anyway. 

Anyhow, Jules, my ancestor, was one of those people who actually had a small note put into the newspapers when he had things installed in his house. See the pink color below.

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I'm not sure, but it would have been a big thing in 1924 to have electric at home I think. 

Remember in October 1924, Calvin Coolidge was the US' 30th President after President Warren G. Harding died of a myocardial infarction and Coolidge, then Vice President, became president. 

Today we are so used to having electric, but can you think what your ancestors would have in their houses growing up?