Records of the Wellingborough Electric Supply Company Limited, 1900-1948

The records comprise two signed minute books. The first (BEW 1) records proceedings of general meetings between 1901 and 1948, and directors' minutes from 1900 to 1903. The second (BEW 2) contains minutes of directors' meetings from 1943 to 1948. The minutes contain little evidence about the practical activities of the company and focus more on matters such as share ownership and the appointment of staff and auditors.

The Wellingborough Electric Supply Company Limited was known as the County of Northampton Electric Power and Traction Company Limited until 1911. It was incorporated in 1900. In 1901, the company signed a contract with the Electrical Power Distribution Company Limited (later the British Electric Traction Company) for electrical supply but later in the decade, it erected a power station at Wellingborough from where it supplied electricity to customers in Northamptonshire. Wellingborough Council was an early client and the company provided the town with street lighting. The company was closely associated with the Northampton Electric Light and Power Company Limited and the Rushden and District Electric Supply Company Limited.

The company was nationalised with the rest of the electric power industry in 1948 and its activities were taken over by the East Midlands Electricity Board.

No archival arrangement has been necessary.

ACCESS: Accessible to all registered readers subject to restrictions concerning personal information.

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 minute books. Copyright in the description belongs to The University of Nottingham.

COPYRIGHT: Permission to make published use of the minute books 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 fate of the bulk of the company's archive is not known. The present collection comprising only of minute books, retained by the East Midlands Electricity Board, was given to The University of Nottingham's Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections in April 2000 by PowerGen.