Basic Industrial Development - Electrification
When the Great Northern Development Company built an electric plant in 1914 in Coon Rapids the region became more attractive to industry. Electrification brought access to convenient, reliable, and more affordable power. Industry until this time relied first on water power and then on coal burning steam engines prone to frequent malfunctions. Industrial operations would no longer to have to depend on expensive coal shipments. Electrification set the stage for industrial migration both of out of the central city and eventually away from railroad lines (during the auto eras).
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