CMLP History
Highlights of CMLP’s History
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1891 - 1897
Under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Chapter 370 of the Acts of 1891 allowed a town like Concord to "engage in the manufacture and distribution of gas and electricity."
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1898 - 1899
On April 4, 1898, Town Meeting voters finally decided to take control of Concord’s electric service, voting to establish a Light Plant governed by a three-member Light Board of local citizens.
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1900 - 1910
On February 2, 1900, the Power House began generating electriTown for the people of Concord. As a result, electric rates were "far below average" according to the Light Board.
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1910's
By 1910 the Light Plant's revenue totaled over 33 thousand dollars and the town had over 8 hundred street lights that covered approximately 45 miles.
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1920's
Rapid growth resulted in a Town Meeting vote in 1920 to double the size of the Power House, an expansion that was completed in 1926.
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1930's
In the spring of 1930, the Light Board considered placing lines and equipment underground in the business district.
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1940's
During the first half of the decade, World War II dominated life in Concord, and electric revenues dropped considerably due to the war.
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1950's
The post-war building boom went into full swing in the 1950s, with homes going up all over Town.
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1960's
Rapid growth continued during the early years of the decade, when the Light Board spent a considerable amount of time discussing new policies to accommodate the building boom.
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1970's
Growth had begun to slow down a bit, and as a result the Plant’s cash position suffered.
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1980's
The cost of power was a major issue in the early 1980s, as rising fuel prices pushed up electric bills.
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1990's
A heavy workload caused by the increasing complexities of the utility business prompted the Light Board to step up its monthly meetings to every three weeks in 1990.
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CMLP Today
We are proud to be a part of the Concord community. When creating this municipal utility, our founders believed that local control would mean better utility service.