There has been no history written of the city of Redding's Electrical Department. Because the men associated with this municipal system in its beginning have become scattered or have died, and only a few of these people still remain in the Redding area, it becomes important that this history be written now (this study was originally written in 1961). Moreover, the documents that relate to that history are fast becoming lost.
 
The purpose of this book is to present a short, concise, chronological history of the Electrical Department of the city of Redding from the year 1914 to the year 1922. The city had its own street lighting system in 1916, and began its distribution of electrical power as of 2 o'clock in the afternoon December 21, 1921. The city of Redding was one of the first northern California cities to distribute electricity as part of its municipal service. Redding was also one of the first California cities to acquire an electrical utility through eminent domain proceedings.