Before the days of security systems and bright electric lights, Murfreesboro was all “gassed up” about downtown safety.
We are talking about the later half of the 19th Century.
Before electricity, some of the streets, businesses and a number of homes in Murfreesboro were lit by gaslights, the first major advance in lighting since the candle. A Scottish engineer, William Murdock, developed a practical method to distill gas from coal for illumination and it became a turn of the century sensation.
The gas for Murfreesboro’s lights was produced at a small plant on South Maple Street. Gas lighting, while superior to candles, did have its drawbacks in smell and plain ol’ danger of explosion. The town’s streetlights were lit each evening by lamplighter.
But downtown, the lampposts provided policemen a new way of communicating in the days before radio and cell phones.
Officers needing backup would tap on the hollow gas posts with a billy club. The ringing sound, according to C.C. Henderson’s “The Story of Murfreesboro,” could be heard for blocks.
In the 1890s, businessman Jim Perry built Murfreesboro’s first electric generation facility. It was a great improvement over the gas plant, but did provide spotty service. Perry sold the plant to J.H. Reed who improved service and expanded the grid. But Reed sold the generator to Dr. J.H. Nelson for $15,000.
Nelson found the plant could not adequately meet the growing demand for electricity. Underpowered, the arc lights gave out a dull yellow glow that only had a 10 to 12 foot range.
Nelson invested in more improvements before selling the operation in 1908 for the princely sum of $41,500. These new owners added to the services and built an auxiliary generator at Walter Hill.
J.C. Beesley, George Beesley and R.B. Roberts purchased the plant in 1916 and spent many thousands of dollars expanding it with a big power house at Walter Hill Dam.
Noting their improvements, Tennessee Electric Power Co., bought out the three partners for $700,000. At the time, that was the largest deal involving a single piece of property in the history of Murfreesboro.
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