Part of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New Deal,” this granted electricity to nearly every farm in the United States. It provided federal funding at low interest rates to cooperatives, power districts, and other public programs. From this, new agricultural advances ensued.
Available Resource(s):
- Power Relations: Western Rural Electric Cooperatives and the New Deal - This article by Brian Q. Cannon from the Western Historical Quarterly gives a brief history of rural electrification and how New Deal agencies empowered westerners.
- P. Van Deraa, “REA Allotments and Loans,” The Journal of Land & Public Utility Economics 12 no. 4 (Nov., 1936), 427-429. - An article that explains how farmer’s got their electricity through extension services, as well as, the different improvements needed to get this up and running.
- Agricultural Heritage Museum – Power to the People - Opening Fall 2019
