Inventor Thomas Alva Edison once said genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration. His hard work earned him more than one thousand patents. Edison is celebrated for his experiments which led to the development of a long lasting, commercially viable, incandescent lightbulb. His research interests ranged from electricity to moviemaking to rubber production. He also founded one of the first industrial research laboratories in the United States.
Edison had a flair for business. He formed the Edison Illuminating Company, which constructed electrical generating stations in New York City. And his Edison Electric Light Company became today’s General Electric.
When Edison died in 1931, thousands gathered to pay their respects. President Herbert Hoover ordered that all electric lights across the U.S. be extinguished for a minute of darkness in Edison’s honor.
Read the Grace Robinson papers at UW’s American Heritage Center to learn more about the life and times of Thomas Edison.
For more information, visit the American Heritage Center site.