On July 13, 1908, the Carolina Power & Light Company (CP&L) was chartered.
The corporation, with a customer base primarily in Raleigh, was the result of a merger of the Raleigh Electric Company, the Central Carolina Power Company and the Consumer Light and Power Company. Within a few years, CP&L owned or controlled local power companies in Oxford, Henderson, Asheville and Goldsboro.
In the early part of the 20th century, electric streetcar systems operated by companies that would become part of CP&L were an integral part of the utility’s business and played an important role in the development of suburban neighborhoods in Asheville and Raleigh. After World War I, the company benefited from the demand created by the proliferation of electrical appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, and stoves that were once considered luxury items.
To generate power for electricity, CP&L used coal, oil and water until the 1960s, when the company built its first nuclear power plant in South Carolina. The company constructed costly nuclear plants in Brunswick and Wake counties before scaling back its production of nuclear energy.
In 2000, CP&L merged with Florida Progress Corporation to form Progress Energy, and Progress in turn merged with Charlotte-based Duke Energy in 2012.
Other related resources:
- The Carolina Power & Light Photo Collection in the State Archives, which consists of photographic prints and negatives taken from circa 1900-1975 by the company’ corporate communications operation
- An overview of electric power in North Carolina from NCpedia
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