This advertisement appeared in a 1945 issue of the Canadian Countryman. Sponsored by the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario (HEPC) - the forerunner to Ontario Hydro and eventually Hydro One - the purpose of this advertising campaign was to encourage farmers to entrust the job of wiring their farm to a skilled professional, and not the “Smith boy … because he’s so handy.” While humorous and helpful, this advertisement is also indicative of the trend of increasing electrification of Canadian (and in this case Ontarion) farms that would take off in the post-War period.
While the high cost of electricity in rural areas is to many a very modern problem, its origins can be found in the early twentieth century, a period of rapid growth in hydroelectricity, particularly in Ontario and Quebec. Throughout its early decades, the HEPC expanded its hydro monopoly across the province by buying up private companies and building and extensive infrastructure. This was a predominantly urban development, however, and much of rural Ontario remained in the dark as private and public producers alike were wary of entering a market with high overheads, low loads, and uncertain revenues. Although the provincial government of the United Farmers of Ontario attempted to subsidize rural electrification during the 1920s, the combined effects of the Great Depression and the Second World War slowed this process down considerably. By the end of the War, only roughly 50% of Ontario farms were electrified, compared to 85% in the United States.
But these rates were on the rise, as the near-total monopoly of HEPC and an aggressive rural electrification initiative on the part of the provincial government brought much-needed infrastructure and lower rates to rural Ontario. The sense of expansion is captured by this advertisement.