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Lightning is Electricity
Ben Franklin makes the discovery that lightning is electricity, which helps pave the way for future research -
Standard Oil Company and Trust
Standard Oil gained a monopoly in the oil industry by buying rival refineries and developing companies for distributing and marketing its products around the globe. -
The Carbon Filament bulb
Thomas Edison aplies for a U.S. patent for an electric lamp using "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected ... to platina contact wires." This bulb would soon be the main bulb by the 1900s. -
The World's First Hydroelectric Power Plant Began Operation
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The Model T
The first production Model T Ford is completed at the company’s Piquette Avenue plant in Detroit. -
The Hoover Dam
The largest dam in the world at the time of its completion in 1935, this National Historic Landmark stores enough water in Lake Mead to irrigate 2 million acres and serves as a popular tourist destination. -
Geothermal Energy
The country's first large-scale geothermal electricity-generating plant begins operation. -
The 1973 Oil Crisis
The 1973 Oil Embargo acutely strained a U.S. economy that had grown increasingly dependent on foreign oil. -
The U.S. Department of Energy is established
The establishment of the Department of Energy brought most Federal energy activities under one umbrella and provided the framework for a comprehensive and balanced national energy plan. -
The Energy Policy Act of 1992
The Energy Policy Act of 1992 aims to reduce U.S. dependence on imported petroleum and improve air quality by addressing all aspects of energy supply and demand, including alternative fuels, renewable energy, and energy efficiency.
