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The History of the Cowan Board of Public Utilities By: L. Jarod Pearson In 1911, Mr. Ross Hawkins and Mr. H.J. (Bud) Hawkins established Cowan Electric and Water System, which was Cowan's first public utility system. The Fair Banks Morse Company was hired in September of that same year to install the light plant, poles and wires while a Mr. Joe Kinningham was hired to wire the first group of houses to receive the new service. Shortly before the electrical service was ready to begin the houses received plumbing and for hot and cold water, including indoor bathrooms. All work for plumbing and electric service was completed one year later in 1912 at which time a new project began to install a sewer system. The Ross Hawkins house on East Cowan Street was the first house in Cowan to receive electricity and running water that same year. The original light plant consisted of a 35 horsepower gasoline engine that turned a generator for electricity. The supply of electricity also powered the water system that consisted of a pump connected to a spring outside of town and a 50,000 gallon storage reservoir. In 1915 the Cowan Light and Water Works was sold to Southern City Power Company out of Atlanta. The Public Utility Holding Act of 1935 led to the demise of privately owned power companies and the Duck River Electric Membership Corporation was formed the very next year. The Cowan water service, now separate from the electrical service reorganized as a public entity known as the Cowan Board of Public Utilities. The water service was upgraded in 1957 with a modern filtration plant, a larger water tower, and a comprehensive new sewer and wastewater system. A second water tower was added in 1996. Today, Cowan Board of Public Utilities operates as one of the area's best performing public water systems. The water supply in Cowan is plentiful even during drought seasons. Cowan's water source is noted for its clean consistency that requires a less complicated purification process compared to other systems. The water also has a unique mineral taste.
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The Ross Hawkins house on West Cowan Street was the first house in Cowan to receive electricity and indoor plumbing.