History
PEPA Timeline
September 30, 1933 The first organizational meeting for Pontotoc County Electric Power Association is held at the Pontotoc County Courthouse. Mark Lafayette Higgs is named president and Claude Pitner Shannon is named secretary.
January 22, 1934 The Tennessee Valley Authority makes its beginning in rural electrification by setting its first pole to serve rural areas in Pontotoc County, Mississippi.
February 23, 1934 Pontotoc County Electric Power Association is legally incorporated under the laws of the State of Mississippi.
February 28, 1935 TVA reads a meter on a primary metering point located on State Highway 6 at the Lee-Pontotoc county line and officially transfers its interests in the electric distribution system to Pontotoc County Electric Power Association. PEPA becomes the second oldest rural electric cooperative in the United States.
January 1, 1936 Pontotoc Electric extends its lines into Bruce and Pittsboro in Calhoun County, Mississippi.
January 12, 1950 A contract is awarded to J. E. Staub and Company of Fulton, Mississippi, for the remodeling of the former Pontotoc Wholesale Grocery buildings for a new office of Pontotoc Electric on the northeast corner of Main Street and Jefferson Street.
January 29, 1951 The Great Ice Storm of 1951 affects all of north Mississippi, the upper corner of northwest Alabama, almost all of west and middle Tennessee, most of Kentucky, and parts of southern Ohio.
January 1, 1953 A branch office for Pontotoc Electric is built on South Newberger in Bruce. The contract is awarded to Luckett Lumber Company in Grenada.
January 1, 1956 Pontotoc Electric purchases the first bucket truck in the state of Mississippi.
January 1, 1962 TVA increases the capacity of the Bruce substation from 3,000 kVA to 7,500 kVA.
January 1, 1963 TVA rebuilds the Pontotoc substation and increases the capacity of the transformers from 10,000 to 60,000 kVA.
January 1, 1968 Pontotoc Electric pays off its loan to the Rural Electrification Administration and becomes one of the few rural electric cooperatives in America to become debt free.
January 7, 1973 An ice storm hits Pontotoc Electric’s service territory. By mid afternoon that day, a nearly total power outage has occurred.
January 1, 1974 The Bruce substation is rebuilt with two new 16,700 kVA transformers and more distribution feeder circuit breakers to accommodate increased electrical growth in Bruce and northern Calhoun County.
October 1, 1975 Pontotoc Electric’s warehouse and operations center is built on Highway 41, southeast of Pontotoc.
September 1, 1982 Bankhead substation is placed into operation
March 1, 1991 Pontotoc Electric publishes its first local pages in the Electric Cooperatives of Mississippi’s statewide publication, Today in Mississippi.
February 9, 1994 A devastating ice storm sweeps across north Mississippi and knocks out electrical service to more than 15,000 PEPA customers and to every circuit except one on the entire power system.
January 1, 1998 Pontotoc Electric’s Pontotoc office building exterior is remodeled by architects Bowman and Bowman from Greenwood, Mississippi and Hooker Construction Company of Thaxton, Mississippi. McGregor’s Chapel substation is built on Veterans Highway 6.
December 23, 1998 An ice storm strikes much of north Mississippi, but due to increased efforts in trimming trees along the power line rights of way, only 5,500 of Pontotoc Electric’s 15,500 customers have a power interruption.
April 19, 2000 TVA holds their monthly board meeting at Pontotoc Electric. This is one of the first times the TVA board chooses to hold their board meeting outside their corporate headquarters in Knoxville, Tennessee.
February 24, 2001 An F4 tornado touches down in Pontotoc and causes major damage to a path 23 miles long. The storm causes considerable damage to Pontotoc Electric’s power system.
August 29, 2005 Hurricane Katrina’s damaging effects strike north Mississippi while still classified as a category one hurricane. Restoration of the power system is completed on September 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005 Pontotoc Electric’s Bruce office is completely remodeled.
September 1, 2007 Pontotoc Electric begins work on an electronic mapping of the power system.
November 18, 2013 The ribbon cutting for the Southwest Bruce Substation officially opened this new substation for the Bruce area.
March 1, 2015 Pontotoc Electric celebrates 80 years in business.
June 1, 2015 An office building was purchased for the site of the new Bruce District Office of Pontotoc Electric. The building formerly housed a pharmacy and was located right beside the previous Bruce District Office. Employees moved into the newly-renovated building in May 2016.
January 1, 2018 An in-house right-of-way department is established. A ribbon cutting is held for the Pontotoc Electric Historical Museum.
January 1, 2019 Pontotoc Electric receives a historical marker celebrating its place in history as the second oldest rural electric cooperative
March 1, 2020 Pontotoc Electric celebrates its 85th anniversary. General Manager Chuck Howell retires and welcomes Frankie Moorman as the new general manager.
June 1, 2020 Ingomar substation is energized