Thomas Alva Edison

Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931) Photo: German Museum Munich

Thomas Alva Edison was born on the 11^th of February, 1847, in the village of Milan in Ohio. He was the son of Samuel Edison, Jr., a native of Canada, and the teacher Nancy Elliott; the daughter of a Baptist preacher in the village of Vienna. His Grandfather, Captain Samuel, father of eight children, remarried at the age of 60, producing six more children. He was extremely robust, reaching the age of 98. The last child was Samuel Edison Jr., Thomas Alva's father. Samuel and Nancy bore seven children, of which four died prematurely. Thomas Alva was the youngest child. In 1854, Samuel and his family left Milan once again. Their travels ended in Port Huron. Thomas Edison, or "Al" as his family called him, was interested in the future of experiments, within the disciplines of physics and chemistry. His gradual descent into deafness started at the age of 12, caused by either, it can be assumed, an attack of scarlet fever, or an untreated middle-ear infection.

Following his travels through the cities of Mt. Clemens (apprenticeship to become a telegrapher from 1862), Stratford, Adrian, Fort Wayne, Cincinnati, Louisville, Indianapolis, Nashville, Memphis, and so on, he wanted to emigrate to Brazil, after numerous failed attempts. Instead, however, he ended up in Boston, securing a telegrapher position in the Western-Union office. Resigning from this position in 1869, he began his vocation as an inventor, working on a so-called (stock market) "Ticker". On October 1, he established the company "Pope, Edison & Co.", although he then subsequently dissolved the firm in the summer of 1870. After this, he worked for the Western Union as an inventor, earning himself his first 30,000 dollars, thanks to the improvement of the "Ticker". Thereupon, he founded the company "Edison & Unger" (at Ward Street 4-6), specializing in "Tickers". His mother passed away in April, 1871. Not long after her death, his father started a love affair with a milkmaid. During the Christmas of 1871, Al married Mary Stilwell, a 16-year-old employee of his company. Their first children arrived soon thereafter; Marion in 1872, Thomas, Jr. in 1876, and William Leslie in 1878. At the end of 1875, Edison dissolved all of his businesses and moved to Menlo Park in New Jersey, some 20 km from New York, where he founded the first industrial research laboratory ("Design Center"). His most important colleagues were Upton, Kruesi, Batchelor, and Johnson. Their first task was to improve the Bell telephone.

In December, 1877, he patented his phonograph, capable of recording and playing back speech, including the famous "Mary had a little lamb". His next great invention was the electric light bulb, which was to replace gas lighting. His next step was to found a new company, called the Edison Electric Light Company. Financial backing came from, among others, Mr. Vanderbilt, the then richest man in America. On November 1, 1879, he received the patent for the carbon filament lamp, made from a carbonized cotton thread and a sealed glass container. At the beginning of 1881, he left Menlo Park and relocated to New York, buying a house at Fifth Avenue 65. At this time, he made plans for the construction of a power plant at Pearl Street 255-257, which came into operation in September, 1882. In addition, he patented 141 inventions in this year alone. In 1883, he discovered the so-called "Edison-Effect". His wife passed away in 1884 from typhoid. On February 24, 1886, he remarried. His bride was the 18-year-old Mina Miller. Following this, along with the transfer of the Edison works, he moved from New York to Schenectady. Starting in August, 1889, he undertook an extended tour of Europe, during which time he met Louis Pasteur, Hermann von Helmholtz and Werner von Siemens. He spent several days with Werner von Siemens in Charlottenburg. The "electricity war" with Westinghouse started in 1885, culminating in public experiments, where animals were killed using alternating currents.

"General Electric" was founded on April 15, 1892, whereupon Edison was booted out, resulting in the sale of his remaining 10% stake in the company. In New Jersey, he began to develop an improved ore extraction method. Through these activities, Edison lost a fortune. However, the invention of the "Kinetoscope" saved him from complete ruin. In 1915, he became president of the Marine Advisory Committee. He retired from the Edison works, leaving it to his sons. He started a passion for botany in his home in Florida, where he also installed a laboratory. There he examined thousands of plants for rubber content. He passed away on October 18, 1931.