When the Lights Came on

On May 30, 1936 President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) signed into law the Rural Electrification Act which, 19 months later, would allow for the formation of West Florida Electric Cooperative (WFEC) and supply electricity for several hundred rural Graceville area residents. This federal act created the Rural Electrification Administration (REA), a branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which provided low interest loans to rural groups desiring to form their own electric cooperatives. On December 10, 1937, over 700 rural residents around Graceville joined together and formed WFEC. They borrowed $194,000 from REA to finance construction of the initial lines, related equipment and office facility. The first office was located in Marianna in 1938. In 1939 the office was moved from Marianna to Graceville and electricity came to these rural residents during that year. WFEC purchased this property in 1946 where the building now stands. Construction began on the building in 1948, and WFEC opened for business here in 1949. Over the years WFEC has expanded this building to its present configuration. This structure is a symbol of progress and a testament to those determined rural residents who, through electricity, helped bring this area into the modern age of the 20th century and provided a better quality of life for many.