An election in 1929 gave the Town of Mooresville permission to sell the Municipal Electric company, including the power plant and its assets to Duke Power Company. With a $50,000 deposit to seal the $500,000 deal, Mooresville’s days of power provider came to an end after 23 years of service. At the time the plant was in need of major repairs, though it generated a profit of more than $2,000 each month. The Town used the funds from the sale to pay municipal debts and improve basic infrastructure and services for citizens.

Municipal power started in 1906 when Mooresville’s 311 voters said YES to a $10,000 bond referendum to build an electric system, Municipal Electric Company.

The town was electrified using the Southern (Duke) Power Company's system of transmission lines. James Donald was hired as superintendent of the light plant, with a salary of $75 per month. The town’s Light and Water Department truck was dispatched to take care of maintenance of these basic services in the community.

As the town grew so did the demand for electric power for homes, businesses and municipal services. The Light Committee, headed by P. S. Boyd, recommended that the contract with Duke Power Company should continue, with new poles for the lines installed on the opposite side of the street from the Telephone Company poles. (Boyd's Eastern Heights development led the residential growth and was among many citizens who benefitted from the expansion of service.)

Electric lights were installed in a growing number of homes and businesses. People began to discover that this invisible power called electricity was safe and useful. Main Street's White Way brought activity to downtown 24 hours a day. Citizens could walk with safety and enjoy lighted, decorated windows featuring goods and services. Evening "window shopping" turned quickly into daytime shopping, and merchants like John Mack and Son started a legacy of beautiful window displays.

In 1908, the electric light committee installed lights and fixtures in a large tent on Broad Street for a moving picture show. The movie owners paid $40 for the power. According to Roy Troutman, “When the picture show started the lights all over town would dim." Mechanical pianos furnished the music to go along with the silent film.”