A street in New York lit by Brush arc lamps, 1881. Lighting was an important early use for electricity.
Image: Science Museum/SSPL
Energy networks
In the 1880s, engineers, spurred by demands from industry, were seeking new ways of harnessing steam to generate electricity. They faced a big problem. The engines they had to use could not go fast enough to generate electricity efficiently using the basic types of dynamo available. This was the challenge that Charles Parsons took up.
How did the electricity supply industry begin?
