Cleco traces its roots all the way back to 1906. It was in that year that C.J. Pope and others in Bunkie, Louisiana, installed a Corlis steam-driven generating plant that produced 25 kilowatts of power. In 1914, that was improved upon when some ice manufacturers and a group of businessmen in Bunkie built a 50-kilowatt diesel engine unit to produce ice and light the plant.

In 1934, that small project became part of Louisiana Ice & Electric Company, which today is known as Cleco Corp.

The early development of the electric industry in the South owes much credit to the ice manufacturing business. Ice was necessary long before electric lights, natural gas or running water were considered necessities. The machinery that ran ice plants was powered by electric motors. Small steam or internal combustion engines were used to drive the equipment. Ice companies also used this power to light their plants and distributed excess energy to nearby homes and businesses. Soon, demand for lighting increased and more facilities were needed to supply electricity. Needless to say, manufacturing and delivering electricity eventually became much more important than making ice.

History Highlights

1934	Financier Floyd Woodcock reorganized Louisiana Ice & Utilities into Louisiana Ice & Electric Company, which today is known as Cleco Corp.
1938	Rea Station, the company's first power plant went into operation in Bunkie, Louisiana.
1945	The company changed its name to Central Louisiana Electric Company Inc. (CLECO).
1951	Gulf Public Service Company merged with CLECO, doubling the size of the company.
1968	CLECO's common stock was admitted for trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
1978	Central Louisiana Energy Corporation (ENERGY) was formed and became the parent company and owner of all of CLECO's outstanding common stock.
1981	CLECO separated from its parent company (ENERGY).
1997	CLECO purchased Teche Electric Cooperative Inc.
1998	CLECO changed its name from Central Louisiana Electric Company Inc. to Cleco Corp. (Cleco) and adopted a new logo.
1999	Cleco implemented a public utility holding company structure, creating a parent company (Cleco Corp.) and two major subsidiaries, Cleco Utility Group and Cleco Midstream Resources LLC.
2000	Cleco's first wholesale power plant, Evangeline Power Station, began commercial operations.
	Cleco Utility Group LLC changed its name to Cleco Power LLC.
2002	Perryville Power Station and Acadia Power Station, the company's other two wholesale power plants, began commercial operations, ending the largest construction phase in Cleco's history, and doubling its generation capacity.
	Cleco received the Edison Electric Institute’s (EEI) prestigious Emergency Response Award for restoring power so quickly after Hurricane Lili, which affected more than 165,000 customers.
	Cleco put its wholesale generation growth strategy on hold after an overbuilt power market and collapsing energy-trading market strained the finances and reputations of many energy companies. Cleco determined, in light of market conditions and other factors, to discontinue speculative trading activities following an assessment of its strategies.
2004	Cleco reached an agreement to sell its 718-megawatt Perryville Power Station to a subsidiary of Entergy Corp.
2005	Cleco completes sale of Perryville Power Station to Entergy Louisiana Inc.
	Cleco announced the planned construction of its new $1 billion, 600-megawatt solid-fuel generating unit to help stabilize customers’ costs by limiting the company’s dependence on natural gas and diversifying its fuel mix. The unit’s Circulating Fluidized-Bed Technology will give it the flexibility to burn a variety of less expensive fuels.
	Cleco’s service territory is hit by two deadly storms, hurricanes Katrina and Rita, back to back, causing more than $160 million in storm damage.
2006	Cleco once again received the prestigious Emergency Response Award from EEI for its heroic efforts to restore power to more than 220,000 customers in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
	Cleco broke ground on its $1 billion generating unit at Rodemacher Power Station near Boyce, Louisiana. The unit will be the third of two existing units at the Rodemacher site and is expected to be complete in late 2009.