Rockville Centre in Nassau County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Charles P. Ketler Municipal Power Plant

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, December 4, 2025

1. Charles P. Ketler Municipal Power Plant Marker

Inscription.
Established 1898—one of the first municipal power plants in the United States

Dedicated May 19, 1971 to Chief Engineer Ketler on the occasion of his 29th year of service to the Village of Rockville Centre

John A. Anderson
Mayor

Philip J. Eisenhauer • Leonard Sandel
Gerard P. Digan • Frederick P. Cole
Trustees

Erected 1971 by Village of Rockville Centre.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Charity & Public Work • Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1898.

Location. 40° 39.521′ N, 73° 38.422′ W. Marker is in Rockville Centre, New York, in Nassau County. It is on Maple Avenue east of Morris Avenue, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 110 Maple Ave, Rockville Centre NY 11570, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the New York City Metropolitan Area

and on Long Island.

It is also in the American Northeast,

in the Mid-Atlantic,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the

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Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland

and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Village of Rockville Centre (within shouting distance of this marker); Rockville Centre September 11, 2001 Memorial (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Rockville Centre World War I Memorial (approx. ¼ mile away); 30 Pounder Parrott Gun (approx. ¼ mile away); South Side (approx. ¼ mile away); South Side Middle School World War I Memorial (approx. 0.3 miles away); September 11, 2001 Memorial (approx. 0.3 miles away); John Michael Ahern (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Rockville Centre.

Also see . . . RVC History (Village of Rockville Centre).

The foresight of the Village's founding fathers is revealed most clearly by their establishment of a municipal electric power plant, in 1898. Originally designed to power street lights, and operated only in the evening hours, the plant, still located on Maple Avenue, is one of three municipal electric
Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, December 4, 2025

2. Rockville Centre Municipal Electric Light and Power
The marker is affixed to the power plant.
utilities on Long Island. At the outset, the power plant averaged 206,182 kilowatt hours of power per year to 285 customers. Today, with the continuing upgrade of the generators, and the Village's access to hydropower supplied by the Power Authority of the State of New York, Rockville Centre's Electric Light and Power provides more than 10,000 residential and commercial customers with approximately 170 million kilowatt hours of power each year, at rates substantially below any other electric utility in the region.

(Submitted on December 7, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York.)

Credits. This page was last revised on December 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 7, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. This page has been viewed 87 times since then and 51 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 7, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.