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Thomas Edison's Birth
Thomas Alva Edison was born on February 11th, 1847 in Milan, Ohio. The family moved to Port Huron, Michigan in 1854. He showed no early signs of being a genius, having great curiosity as a child. (Asimov 129) (Hylander 158) -
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Thomas Edison's Life
Thomas Edison's childhood and accomplishments and world events that happened during his lifespan. -
The California Gold Rush
The discovery of gold nuggets in the Sacramento Valley in early 1848 sparked the California Gold Rush. As news spread, thousands of gold miners traveled by sea or land to San Francisco. By the end of 1849, the non native population had grown to 100,000. A total of $2 billion worth of precious metal was found during the Gold Rush. (https://www.history.com) -
The End of The Irish Potato Famine
The Irish Potato Famine began in 1845 when a fungus called Phytophthora infestans spread rapidly throughout Ireland. The infestation ruined up to 1/2 the potatoes in that year, and about 3/4 of potatoes over the next 7 years. The Potato Famine caused the death of about one million Irish from starvation and caused another million to immigrate to other countries. (https://www.history.com) -
Early Education
After moving to Port Huron, Thomas Edison was enrolled in public school for a few weeks. His teacher at school told Edison he was addled. His mother was furious and began to homeschool him. (Asimov 129) -
A Young Inventor
He had a home laboratory in his cellar, but his mother was suffering from fumes and it was too expensive.He became a candy vendor and newspaper boy to continue his experiments. He started a newspaper called the Grand Trunk Herald and the paper netted 45$ a month. His indoor lab ended when he dropped a bottle of phosphorus and the train caught on fire. He was boxed on the ears by the conductor. (Hylander 159-160 ) (Bolton 88) -
The Civil War
The Civil War in the United States began in 1861,after years of fighting between northern and southern states over slavery. When Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860, it caused a total of 11 states to secede from the U.S. The war ended after the Confederate surrender in 1865. Over 620,000 soldiers died in the fighting. (https://www.history.com) -
Telegraph Operator
Edison saved a child on the train tracks and the station agent taught him how to be a telegraph operator. He applied at Port Huron and made 25$ a month.He invented a device that attached to the clock that would automatically send the signal every hour.
He was caught when the operator attempted to call him and discovered the device.(Bolton 89-90) -
First Failure
Edison's first invention the Electric Vote recorder was a failure.
Votes would be automatically recorded so there wasn’t a miscount in votes.Congressman told Edison that the electric vote recorder wasn't needed because there was no desire to speed the process. (Asimov 131) (Bolton 92) -
The Universal Printer
Edison created the Universal printer. It allowed gold quotations to be printed instead of indicating them. He sold his invention for 40,000 dollars to General Marshall Lefferts. (Bolton 93) -
The Phonograph
In 1876, Edison moved to a bigger lab in Menlo Park, NJ. The phonograph consisted of a base, tubing, and a crank. He wrapped tin foil around the cylinder and recited Mary had a little lamb. His voice went back to his men unmistakably. (Hylander 165-166)
(Bolton 99-100) -
The Lightbulb
Thomas Edison had wanted to fix the issue of a short life span with incandescent light bulbs. Edison tried using every element and compound and found that carbon had the best results. Workers carbonized hundreds of substances and ended his search by making the filaments out of carbonized paper. In October of 1879, Edison's carbon filament light bulb lit for 40 hours. Edison replaced the paper with bamboo until it was replaced with tungsten later. (Hylander 167-169) -
The Kinetoscope
Edison created a forerunner of the projector call the kinetoscope. He manufactures suitable a suitable form of film along with it. By 1912, Edison synchronized his projected film with phonograph records. He called this machine the kinetophone. (Bolton 101) (Hylander 172) -
The Eruption of Mount Peleé
On April 2nd, 1902, on the island of Martinique in the city of Saint-Pierre, was wiped off the map from the eruption of Mount Peleé. The city of Saint Pierre was destroyed in 3 minutes and everyone died instantly. Over 29,000 people died, there were only two survivors, one being a prisoner held in a prison cell. (https://www.history.com) -
The Start of World War 1
World War 1 began after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. During the war, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire known as the central powers, fought against Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Japan and the United States known as the allied powers. The war ended with victory going to the allied powers in 1918. More than 16 million people had died. (https://www.history.com) -
The Birth of The Soviet Union
In post-revolutionary Russia, the USSR is formed, made up of Russia, Belorussia, Ukraine, and the Transcaucasian Federation. The Soviet Union was the new form of government that ended the Russian Empire and the followed ideas of Karl Marx. The Soviet Union remained strong under leaders like Vladimir Lenin. However in 1991, the Soviet Union was dissolved following the collapsing of the communist government. (https://www.history.com) -
Thomas Edison's Death
Edison continued to work until he died on October 18th, 1931 due to complications from diabetes. He died at the age of 84 in West Orange, New Jersey. Throughout his life, Edison had brought multiple inventions that has benefited the development modern technology. (Hylander 173) (https://www.biography.com)
