History of New River Light and Power

New River Light and Power Company has been part of the Boone community since 1915. That was the year that New River began generating electricity for Appalachian Training School (the forerunner of Appalachian State University) and the town of Boone. There were 3 employees responsible for maintaining service to the School and 6 Boone residences were wired for electricity.

During the early years, New River's system consisted of 15 miles of line run on poles made from local chestnut trees. Today the system includes more than 1,000 transformers and 200 miles of overhead and underground lines. New River has 28 employees to meet the needs of nearly 7,000 residential and commercial customers. The Company purchases power from Blue Ridge Electric of Lenoir, NC. New River, which is a non-profit subsidiary of Appalachian State University, serves the area generally within the town limits of Boone.

As the first utility to serve northwestern North Carolina, New River Light and Power established a tradition of responsible and prompt service meeting the ever-changing needs of Boone and its residents.