Norwich bulletin., 1922-03-25
PUTNAM

place 1R SEkGESl- g-epsEHs WIRE pEi&kS ESft- susnEnated Friday, when attorneys aP peared before the pszlbsis utilities eomFAlsS | sion at Hartford to ask for the privilege of transferring the stock Of the Putnam i Light and Power company to the Eastern 1 Connecticut Power company. The tFans- action under which the leeai lighting l company Is to be gasoTbed by the East- eTn Connecticut Power company Is said l to involve approximately $1.0ee, 900. It Is expected tfrat full and complete 1 control of the Putnam Light and Power l company will pass to the Eastern Con- aect4eat Power ceHg9asay with the cona- 1 1 ing of the first of April. Insofar as Put 1 aRSa or tae territory that the local light 1 | Ing company serves ts concerned. there will he little, If any, eutward iadIeatton ] Of the change of ownership iD this public l utiihy. II was stated Friday that different , firms of attorneys in Putnam and else- where have been engaged for the past l nsoGtf h preparing abstracts and other 1 papers having to do with such an ina- 1 poTapt transfer of property. TAere have l been hints from tine to time, with yelled ! publicity, that something big was ip the i wind, but tt Bss Ret until this week that l persons intimately associated In one way l or another with the big deal gave perHls- 1 sion for publication of t7ae actual fact l tftdt tffo SSfSSttAfFet0aa Sf us p<pPSRAtNSs | as the traRsactieR IS called in some qAar- l ters. had been agreed to and the details l worked out ia legal form Tine Putnam Light and Power com 1 Pany, wsth its main plant for the pro- l euction of power at MecilaHicsyille, just l north of this city, serves the towns ef PntnaHa, PeFnfFet, Woedstoek and 1 Thompson. Tie iaeai corporation, as it ] I may be considered, was owned by the Frank 4. Sayles estats. and is one of the l big assets il the tremendous fortune ief | by the late manufacturer, whose resi- ! dsaee was in Rhode Island, l Settlement of the estate has been at- 1 tracing the attention Of the Rhode Is- and courts for msay months. The Put 1 AsFn Light and Power company was one ! Of the principal assets and It's sale was 1 decided upon, long since, in order that l the settlement of the estate might be carried out along the lines approved. Representatives Of the Eastern Con<i hectIcut Power company. whose lines 1 run down into this territory and south
 Eard from Massachusetts, and wtiich Monts7lie, have been long engaged in ne- gotiatiens for the property Of the Put nam Light and Power ccEzpany, The head Of one firm of attorneys in this city
 said Friday that his office had been er-
 gagged for a month ia preparing Iegat
 papers having to do with the transfer. l The Eastern Connecticut Power een-
 pany has become more or less familiar i3 Wtadhasn county during the past three l years II furnishes power to many cen-
 ters and for various purposes and is
 said to have practically unlimited back l Ing from powerful financial interests Of
 nRtioa-wfde reputation
 1 Tn Putnam or any of the territory that
 sE1s Putnam Ltsf4t ard Power cecnyany
 serves there will be no indication of the
 change il ownership Of the property
 The personnel oS the local organization |, will remain as it is. Engineers will be sest here to study the focal territory and ascertain, if possible, how the service can be improved. wdich study vii! be no . reelection, t Is said, on the present ex-
 ceilent service, arEoTeciated not only In Putnam but all of the towns served by 4 the Putnam Light and Power company g
 lines.
 The PutRan liehtiRe compsny had its
 beginning back h 1888. when # was ;n- 1 eorpoEated under the name of the Put, naZga Gas Pipe company, succeeding the : I old sn!Ht stock cempRny of the sams
 name: In April, 1887, the Putnam Elec. ] tric Light company was created and il 7 the same year this concern and the ga.
 company were consolidated by act Of the a Legislature
 ' James w. Manning pr. G. L. Miller George 4. Hammond and others tsels 2 leading part In, the affairs of the light 3 ing companies. which. about 20 years
 ago. were sold to Prank A, Sayles. h those days the water power rigIlf , 1 of MF, Sayles at Mechantesviile, where his French River Textile company is } iacatsd, were not haFnessed, and this ? was looked upon as needless waste, To . deTelap Pewer and sell what he did not need was tele ambition Of Mir. SayleS and
 his associates and so stock in the Put nam Lighting company was puTcha sed, first as controlling interest. and then,
 as years passed every outstanding share
 After g. time the electric generator, propelled by steam. in the building on
 Main street now used ny .oBsWorth
 Brothers, was moved to MeenapIcsville,
 where there had been built. about 1908
 or 1908. g power house. Generation by
 water Of 15e ktlowats was the limit of ! the capacity. 14Ster & steam plant was
 put In, beiag equipped with g. 500 kiiowat
 generator, and some years afterward
 there was installed a 1,2eO kilowat gen.
 orator. Then came the dewelopment of
 the water power privilege wMh the in-
 stallsticn of 3 300 kilowat generator, and within the past two years the conaany
 has erected a 2.5oo lsiiowat transform
 ing station, at which the Ss DOC volts !
 Power company are reduced to 2S,00a
 kiioEats and less.
 The company has kept apaee with the
 demands for it's servFes extending Ns
 electric plant as the city and snrroun6fhg
 towns grew and more electricity was de.
 manded.
 On the Illuminating gas side. the com.
 pany had In the beginning a 2o.oeo feet
 holder. this being abandoned aonae IS
 years ago for larger one. and still later
 for tho present holder Of 4e,ooe feet ca-
 pactty.
 h 1908 tAe legislature added the town
 or Thompson to the territory, and the
 lighting company was privileged under
 It's franchise to serve, and in 1905 the
 town of PegnfFes was added
 In April. 1911. tae eenpany was given
 certain restrictive rights to furnish cleo
 tFicity to tho town Of Woodstock, and at
 ths last session oe the general szs~inbIy
 the company was given tAe same full and complete rigsts sR Woodstock as t has h the ether three towns.
 For the last ts years the conpany has
 been under the naar&gernent and diree-
 ton CT Ralph .. Thurs$on, who is alsC
 chef of Putrsfn'$ fire department. Vn- Ger his supervision the concern has made IS greatest advances and has done its eigEeS eynanStsg, Ills long, successful
 management es the company Is eorvtnc-
 Ing tribute to his business and technical
 sbilsty. ''''N'> Prior to Mr. Thurstos takin9 chares oi sAe canpany'S affairs. Allen W. Bow er
 was general manager for many years. I've uReeAtsstes div@rees were granted