The nation's first commercial electric plant began operation in Appleton in 1882 when banker and paper company executive Henry J. Rogers introduced electric power to his factory and home. On Aug. 20, 1882, electricity began flowing to paper mills and a handful of houses within a one-mile radius of his plant; two weeks later Wall St. and neighboring sections of New York City were lit by the world's second electrical generating plant.

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Electrical power in Wisconsin

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Dictionary of Wisconsin History

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[Source: Turning Points in Wisconsin History]