Natural gas infrastructure history linked to Renaissance Fair popularity

The popularity of Renaissance Fairs serves as a backdrop for reflecting on the historical evolution of modern utilities. The natural gas delivery system, which currently serves over 189 million Americans, is the result of centuries of engineering and investment.

Historical uses of natural gas date back 2,500 years to ancient China, where bamboo pipes were used for small-scale transport. During the Industrial Revolution, Scottish inventor William Murdoch demonstrated that natural gas could be transported through metal pipes to provide lighting for homes, serving as an improvement over candles. Today, the United States maintains a vast network consisting of more than 2.8 million miles of pipelines.