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Coal begins being used
In 1748, the production of coal commercially began in Richmond, Virginia.
http://teachcoal.org/lesson-plan-history-of-coal-in-the-u-s -
Electricity in the US
Ben Franklin (United States) tied a key to a kite string during a thunderstorm, and proved that static electricity and lightning were the same thing. -
Natural Gas used in the US
In Fredonia, New York, William Hart dug the first successful well that was intended to produce natural gas.
www.apga.org/.../aboutus-facts-history-of-natural-gas -
Wind energy used in the US
Daniel Halladay and John Burnham worked to build and sell the Halladay Windmill, designed for the American West. It had an open tower design and thin wooden blades. They also started the U.S. Wind Engine Company.
http://connecticuthistory.org/halladays-revolutionary-windmill-today-in-history-august-29/ -
Petroleum in the US
Oil was first discovered when a homemade rig drilled down 70 feet and came up coated with oil. This rig was near Titusville (in northwestern Pennsylvania) and was owned by "Colonel" Edwin L. Drake.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_petroleum_industry_in_the_United_States -
Ethanol used in the US
The Union Congress put a $2 per gallon excise tax on ethanol to help pay for the Civil War. Before the Civil War, ethanol was a major illuminating oil in the United States. After the tax was imposed, the cost of ethanol increased too much to be used this way.
http://www.eia.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=tl_ethanol -
Hydropower used in the US
The world's first central DC hydroelectric station provided power for a paper mill in Appleton, Wisconsin.
www.hydro.org/tech-and-policy/history-of-hydro/ -
Solar energy in the US
John Ericsson (United States) invented and erected a solar engine that used parabolic trough construction.
exploringgreentechnology.com/solar-energy/history-of-solar-energy/ -
Nuclear energy used in the US
Enrico Fermi (U.S. immigrant from Italy) irradiated uranium with neutrons. He believed he had produced elements beyond uranium, not realizing that he had split the atom, thus achieving the world's first nuclear fission. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics for this discovery in 1938.
nuclear-energy.net/what-is-nuclear-energy/history -
Geothermal energy in the US
The first commercial-scale development tools were placed in California at The Geysers, a 10-megawatt unit owned by Pacific Gas & Electric.
http://www.eia.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=tl_geothermal
