“In an instant, there was a brilliant illumination of the surroundings as far as the eye could see. It seemed as if the night had been suddenly transformed into day.”
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Those were the words printed in The Border Mail on July 29, 1916 – the day after Albury's electricity was first switched on.
Before then, the town's lighting came from gas, oil, kerosene and candles.
Career electrician Joe Wooding said the reality of power left many residents baffled 100 years ago.
Nowadays, the push of a button to illuminate an entire room wouldn't warrant a second thought from most people.
“What can you do without electricity today – you can't get a shirt or a pair of trousers,” Mr Wooding said.
“We can't drive from A-to-B without filling up the car using a pump run off electricity.
“The only thing I could think of would be to skinny dip in the river.”
Mr Wooding became enthralled in the history of power when he joined the Albury Historic Society.
He spent 35 years with the Murray River County Council, from 1961, which provided him with his electrician trade and income.
Mr Wooding said large-scale electricity generation in Albury began by the Murray River at Mungabareena Waterworks.
“They used to burn coal to make steam and used the steam to create electricity,” he said.
“That electricity made the pumps run at Waterworks to electrify Albury.”
Albury first experienced power in 1883, when the railway line from Sydney met up with the one to Melbourne.
“They were different gauges, so they didn't actually join but they were side by side,” Mr Wooding said.
“There was a fabulous banquet and they brought in a generator from Melbourne - it was a huge affair.
“They had 1016 gentlemen - no ladies were mentioned - 40 people from the media and 225 waiters.
“The place was all lit with electricity.
“It was at the engine shed at the railway - it would have nearly been opposite the platform in Albury.
“That was the first time it was seen in Albury - but not the first time it was spoken about.”
The second sight of light came in 1896, when an exhibition building at Market Square, now QEII Square, had electricity supplied by Alcock Electric Lighting Company of Melbourne.
Albury Council began to seriously consider the proposal of bringing power to town.
What followed was 20 years of reports, debates and public meetings.
A vote was held in October 1912, to determine whether council should borrow 10,500 pounds for a power station and electric pumping at Waterworks.
Of the 882 eligible ratepayers, 200 residents who showed at the polls and voted three to one in favour of the scheme.
An agreement was signed on October 8, 1915. The following year Albury mayor Percy Burrows’ wife performed a “switching on” ceremony at the town hall.
“The simple touch by the mayoress on the switch also sent the current through the whole scheme for lighting the streets and the lamps instantly shone out with great brilliance,” The Border Mail reported.
Mr Burrows signed up for power points for a fan, a sewing machine, lights, a vacuum cleaner and a radiator.
His requisition and agreement for the supply of electricity can be found in the Electricity in Albury display at the Library Museum, which will run until October 3.
Albury's first of five sub-stations was built at Volt Lane one year before power was turned on. Electricity, generated at Waterworks, was sent via a 3300 volt line to supply the town.
A new boiler was installed at Waterworks in 1922, doubling the power house output to 600 kilowatts, however electricity consumption continued to increase, prompting the council to explore other options.
A new generation plant was planned to go near the railway, because transporting coal to Mungabareena was expensive.
But, by 1925, Victoria's State Electricity Commission was extending its system to North East Victoria and offered large-scale supply to Albury.
The following year, Sir John Monash switched off the current from Waterworks and turned on the new supply from the SEC, which was transferred up from Yallourn in south-east Victoria.
The electricity supply was managed by council up until 1958 when the Murray River County Council was formed.
At the time, a large substation, which had been built in Union Road, supplied electricity to Corowa, Mulwala and Finley.
Dean Street's power was placed underground in 1961, about the same time issues were being caused by people flying their kites too close to lines overhead.
The MCCC changed its name to Murray River Electricity in 1987 before nine county councils merged to form Great Southern Energy.
Albury's secondary substation was planned for Jelbart Road, after a devastating fire at the Union Road plant in 1989.
Nowadays, the two are run by state-owned corporation Essential Energy, which is responsible for an electricity network, spanning 95 per cent of NSW.
Union Road has 10 outgoing 22,000 volt distribution powerlines, which supply almost 20,000 customers in North Albury, Lavington, West Albury, Thurgoona and several rural areas including Howlong, Jindera and Brocklesby.
The Jelbart Road zone substation, in North Albury, was completed in 1997 and now supplies power to about 9,000 customers in Albury.
Mr Wooding said residents had come a long way since the old gas lamps.
“It's hard to comprehend how much has changed – we are just so reliant on electricity now,” he said.
“During my career, whenever electricity was turned on, I had a reason to be there.
“All my income came from the electricity industry in some way or another.”
To celebrate the milestone, SparkUp will be held in Volt and AMP lanes from 5.30pm Friday. Festivities will include late trading, live music and even a silent disco.
