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2000 BCE
Chinese First to Use Coal as Energy Source
Chinese were the first to burn coal for heating and cooking. http://alternativeenergy.procon.org/view.timeline.php?timelineID=000015 -
First Electric Light
Humphry Davy invents the first incandescent electric light, known a the electric arc lamp. -
First Crude Electric Car
Electric cars first began to be built almost 200 years ago. They did not become popular until the early 1900s but began to decline afterward. Their popularity increased in the late 1990s and 2000s, and they became mass produced by the 2010s. http://energy.gov/articles/history-electric-car -
Edison Patents Marketable Light Bulb
Edison has successfully adjusted the light bulb to be easy to produce and sell, and patents it. http://www.edisonmuckers.org/thomas-edison-lightbulb/ -
First Electric Plant
The first electric plant built by Thomas Edison in New York. It powered a square mile radius. http://alternativeenergy.procon.org/view.timeline.php?timelineID=000015 -
Tesla Develops AC Generators
Tesla develops alternate current generators to carry electricity long distances. -
Assembly Line Mass Produces Gas Cars
Henry Ford is the first to mass produce gas motor vehicles. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/fords-assembly-line-starts-rolling -
Hoover Dam is Built
The dam was created as a power supply, to provide irrigation water, and to control flooding. It's one of the most historic hydro power projects in history. http://energy.gov/eere/water/history-hydropower -
First Nuclear Reactor to Generate Electricity
Built in Idaho, the plant could barely power a string of light bulbs but it was still an astounding achievement. http://alternativeenergy.procon.org/view.timeline.php?timelineID=000015 -
Discovery of the First Solar Cell
Calvin Fuller, Gerald Pearson, and Daryl Chapin discovered the first functioning solar cell that coule produce enough energy to power small electrical devices. https://www.experience.com/alumnus/article?channel_id=energy_utilities&source_page=additional_articles&article_id=article_1130427780670
