The certificate is dated November 5, 1942.
The company was incorporated in Delaware.
The merger of three large holding companies into the Commonwealth &
Southern Corporation in May 1929 created the nation’s largest utility
holding company. Holding companies such as the Commonwealth &
Southern Corporation were umbrella organizations linking together
smaller electric companies into large and powerful organizations.
Government regulators were alarmed by the ability of large holding
companies to use their tremendous (often monopolistic) power to set high
electricity rates. This abuse, coupled with some notorious cases of
corruption caused many government and business leaders to become alarmed
by what the merger created: a single corporation controlling 165
utility companies in 10 states ranging from Michigan to Florida. FDR
eventually forced the breakup of this powerful holding company.
Wendell Willkie became president of the Commonwealth & Southern
Corporation in early 1934. Once he assumed control of the financially
weakened company, he immediately instituted a series of successful
revenue-boosting plans and this success, combined with his superior
speaking skills, lead Willkie to assume the role of chief spokesman for
the electric utility industry. That leadership role positioned Willkie
to become the most visible critic of FDR’s New Deal legislation, which
in turn, more than any other factor, enabled Willkie to capture the 1940
GOP nomination.
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