The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-05-29
RICHMOND in
ELECTRIC
SUPPLIES. il
What She Has Done in
Electricity.
! THE PIONEER IN
THIS MODERN LINE
The Only Factory for Building
Electric Motors and Gene
rators in the South.
ONLY THREE YEARS OLD,
5r BUT DOING BUSINESS.
|iThe Richmond Electric Company
and Its splendidly Equipped
Plant for Modern Work.
Puts This City Among
Ccntcrs for Supplying
Electrical Apparatus.
1.-The Only Factory for Building
: Electric Motors and Gene
rators in the Sontll.
'ONLY THREE YEARS OLD,
BUT DOING BUSINESS

What is Richmond doing? The an
cicnt idea that Richmond lis behind the
times ia exploded. Whatever is now,
whatever is good. whatever is available
md profitable, Richmond Is as quick to
utilize and develop as any town on the
American continent, In many lines and
in many respects she Is ahead OF her
sister cities Of the country, and ir all
respects a bow shot ahead OF any OF her
sister Southern cities.
Electricity with all OF the enterprises
that hang by II istsomething new within
itself. Young people not yet out OF the
teens can easily remember the first cleo
trio light. the first electric street car line.
the first electric motor, the first electric
generator. Richmond is prominently
identified With the eatly Development of
electricity. The first street railway In
the United States to change from mule
or horee power to electricity was the
city. l#$
The Electric Pioneer.
Few Richmond people realize or even
know cf the fact that tho great fight Of
\ 4 he ~ rect railway lnntor was made lipl
and down the grades OF this goodly old
city OF seven hills and that II was hero
that the fighters, SpraEue, Bell. Cosby
and others did their best work, but ouch
Is tho fact. 1t iR therefore. quite fitting
that Richmond should now have the dis
tinction OF being the first city in the
South to manufacture a lne OF electric
motors. Such Is indeed the case, for there
10 IN Richmond a factory busy turning
out an article nowhere else produced In
the State OF Virginia. We have heard
go much about yankee skill and ingenuity
along mechanical lines. that It is pleas.
ure 10 realize that Virginia has entered
The field OF electricity in dead earnest.
Homes of Electrical Machinery.
AS a matter OF general information 1t
might be we'll TO note the fact that
Schenectady, y. Y. Is the biggest manu-
factIrer OF electrical machinery In the
world: second comes Pittsburg; Ampere.
n. j.. probably third, Milwaukee and
Cincinnati Il have also large manufactures
for electrical machinery. These electric
centres, as we may call them. supply
the Northern and Western territory. and
as a matter Of course. ship a great deal
OF their products to foreign lands, for
all OF tho electrical machinery that sup
plies the world. or prac tically all Is,
manufactured In this country.
These manufacturing points are far re-
moved from the Southern and Southeast
crn secuOnS or our country. and mas
much as electrical machinery is OF heavy
weight and the matter of freight rates
on It's transportation cuts considera BILE
figure. it was essential that factory
with the proper geographical situation
to enable 1t to place its products in the
South and Southeast at minimum rate
OF freight should be established.
Richmond the Logical Place.
As has been shown in series OF ar
ticles in the Sunday Times Dispatch,
Richmond Is natural distributing
po.nt for the Southeast. 1t was,
therefore. the most natural thing
in the world that Richmond cap
ttal. energy and enterprise were
not slow to realize the fact that
here was the point for an establishment
for the manufacture OF electrical machin-
ery Richmond capital was indeed not
slow to realize this fact, and about three
years ago Richmond Electric Company
was organized with ample capital, rms
company. of which Mr., p. j, Wills .
the President and General Manager and
Mr., George Cole Scott is the Secretary,
built a magnificent factory and suppneo
1t with all tho up-to-date machlhery
necessary for the rapid manufacture OF
electric motors and generators IT was =
new business. brand new, ana there Wero
( croakers who laughed at what they con,
ccived to be the folly or boldness OF
these gentlemen, but they have oe1''o'i-
-. e pp ~ 4