Dear Gill,

Tough assignment :-) What follows maybe will be of help, but I am not sure it will contain specifics about Manchester. All sources mentioned cover UK.

Dillon, Maureen. Artificial Sunshine: a social history of domestic lighting. National Trust, 2002. ISBN 0707802881

Bowers, Brian. A history of electric light & power. Vol. 3. Peter Peregrinus Limited, 1982.

Bowers, Brian. Lengthening the day: a history of lighting technology. Oxford University Press, USA, 1998.

Otter, Chris. The Victorian eye: A political history of light and vision in Britain, 1800-1910. University of Chicago Press, 2008.

Regards, Tom

Hi Tom, thanks so much for this! I am struggling to find answers. My assumption is that commercial and street lighting arrived first and domestic electric supply followed at some point, but when?  Longsight was not even a part of Manchester at the time and was very much a semi - rural suburb. My only other thought was to consult council minutes but again, approval of supply does not necessarily translate into domestic customers. Thanks again, I will certainly seek out these books. :0) Kind Regards, Gill

Hi Gill, another shot in dark could be old British newspapers. Here are some links. Usually they charge :-( Good luck, Tom

http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk

http://www.paperspast.co.uk

This one, in particular, offers excellent sources in Manchester:

http://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/448/archives_and_local_history/4670/archive_and_local_collections/3

Hey Gill, here is a closer shot :-)

The Longsight Public Library:

http://www.manchester.gov.uk/directory_record/87771/longsight_lib