Kern River Transmission Line Breaks Records

Orville Ensign, an engineer at Edison Electric Company, which became Southern California Edison in 1909, invented the porcelain insulator. It replaced glass designs that were originally built for telegraph lines, but unable to support heavier electric...

In 1910, the Pacific Power Company, a Southern California Edison predecessor, was organized to provide electric service to several mining camps. The Jordan Plant was constructed and began powering the towns of Aurora, Rawhide and Bodie in 1911. Two...

Southern California Edison relied mostly on hydro generation until the mid-1920s. A severe drought from 1921-24 left the company with inadequate water supply to meet demand. SCE leased private steam plants owned by manufacturing industries such as cement...