Manchester Corporation electricity substation switchboard from Didsbury, made in 1939, Manchester.
This switch and fuse board, known as a 'Manchester Corporation Board’ was made for Manchester Corporation Electricity Department.
It was used at William Street substation in Didsbury, Manchester, from 1939 to 2012. It fed power cables that ran around the local area and protected the system from faults with large fuses.
The board was made to last. With a polished slate back and huge copper knife switches, it was proudly maintained in the 1930s by 'substation attendants' who polished and cleaned it, even when it was live. They did this standing on rubber mats to avoid electrocution!
The board only came out of service when Electricity North West replaced it with a new system that had fully enclosed switchgear and was only a quarter of the size of this one. The upgrade was for both safety and capacity issues. The substation was being called upon to feed power into a new Metrolink tram line serving Didsbury.