About
Crow Wing Power (officially named Crow Wing Cooperative Power and Light Company) was begun in 1937 thanks to the formation of the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) by Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt realized that the nations goal of industrialization and modernization couldnt happen if the majority of citizens didnt have access to electric power.
At that time investor owned electric utilities only served higher density cities. They felt it would not be profitable to serve less dense rural areas. So the REA allowed people to join together, form cooperatives and borrow money to bring electricity to rural areas. On March 24, 1938 power to the first 140 Crow Wing Power members was turned on for the first time.
Today, cooperative members are still the owners and any profits over and above operating margins are returned to members in the form of capital credits. Crow Wing Power has nine Directors elected by the membership to serve on the Board.
We currently serve electricity to 37,000 members in Cass, Crow Wing and Morrison Counties.
