Records of the East Midlands Electricity Board, 1948-1990

The collection comprises:

• Draft minute books of sub-area managers' meetings, May 1948-December 1957 (BEE 1).
• Signed attendance registers of meetings, January 1948-September 1974 (BEE 2).
• Printed issues of East Midlands Electricity Journal, 1965-1968 (BEE 3).
• Maps and plans showing: the board's area of supply, mining subsidence in Nottinghamshire, DC traction feeders on Nottingham's tramways, and mains heating to premises in Nottingham, 1950-1990 (BEE 4).
• Photographs comprising one image of the principal officers and sub-area managers, and nine of the offices of the Mansfield district of the board, 1961-c.1978 (BEE 5).
• Graphic artwork created by employees for topical social evening programmes and Christmas dinner menus of the Ilkeston sub-area, and of the area's offices and electricity sub-stations, 1958-1984 (BEE 6).

The East Midlands Electricity Board began operating on 1 January 1948 following the nationalisation of the electricity industry under the Electricity Act 1947. The act defined the area to be controlled by the board as 'Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Rutland and parts of Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, the Soke of Peterborough, Staffordshire and Warwickshire.' This area was further sub-divided into the sub-areas: Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, Derby, Nottingham, Burton on Trent, Leicestershire and Warwickshire, Leicester, Coventry, Northamptonshire, and Lincolnshire. The headquarters for the board was at Mapperley Hall near Nottingham.

By 1973, the board covered the same basic area, but was divided into southern, north-western and north-eastern groups. Each group was divided into districts. By 1994, the region had been divided into seven business units based on county areas with each unit serving approximately 300,000 customers.

The board controlled electricity supply to the East Midlands as well as administering power stations in the region on behalf of the East Midlands Generation Division of the British Electricity Authority. It was also involved in engineering development, and electrical appliance sales and servicing. In the 1990s, electricity generation and supply was privatised and on 27 July 1998, East Midlands Electricity was acquired by PowerGen, a private power generation company.

The records have been divided into 6 series bringing like document types together. Within these series, items have been arranged chronologically.

ACCESS: Accessible to all registered readers.

REPROGRAPHIC: Reprographic copies can be supplied for educational use and private study purposes only, depending on access status and the condition of the documents.

This description is the only finding aid available for the collection. Copyright in the description belongs to The University of Nottingham.

COPYRIGHT: Permission to make published use of the collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Keeper of the Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections (email mss-library@nottingham.ac.uk). The Department will try to assist in identifying copyright owners but this is often difficult and the responsibility for copyright clearance before publication ultimately rests with the person wishing to publish.

LANGUAGE: English

The collection was given to The University of Nottingham's Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections in April and June 2000 by PowerGen.

University of Nottingham; Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections: Records of the East Midlands Electricity Board's predecessor power generation and supply companies: The Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Electric Power Company 1901-1948 (BED), Boston and District Electric Supply Company 1923-1948 (BEB), Leicestershire and Warwickshire Electric Power Company 1904-1948 (BEL), Northampton Electric Light and Power Company Limited 1936-1948 (BEN), Mid-Lincolnshire Electric Supply Company Limited 1936-1948 (BEZ), Wellingborough Electric Supply Company Limited 1900-1948 (BEW), Midland Electric Light and Power Company Limited 1887-1948 (BEX), Tamworth District Electric Supply Company 1930-1944 (BET), Melton Mowbray Electric Light Company 1899-1948 (BEM), Oakham Gas and Electricity Company Limited 1917-1945 (BEO), Rushden and District Electric Supply Company Limited, 1945-1948 (BER), and W.J. Furse and Company Limited, 1912-1987 (BEF).