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He born
He was born in Miilan, Ohio. -
The Grain Elevator
When he was 3 he fell into a grain elevator and almost drowned in the grain because he wanted to know how the elevator worked. -
Duck Eggs
At age 4, his father found him squatting on some duck eggs in a cold barn to see if he could hatch the eggs instead of the mother duck. -
Education
When he was 7, his mother took him out of school and taught him at home because his teachers thought his constants questions were a sign of stupidity. -
A chemistry Lab
When he was about ten, he set up a chemisty lab in the basement in his home, and during one of his experiments, he set the basement on fire and nearly blew himself up. -
He went into bussiness
When he was 12, in order to earn money to pay for the chemicas for his experiments, he went into bussiness selling candy and newspapers to the local train. -
He started a fire
He was forced to stop his experiments temporarily when a stick of phosphorous started a fire in the crude lab he had set up in the baggage car. -
Seidlitz Powders
Once he gave a friend a triple dose of seidlitz powders, hoping that enough gas would be generated to enable hm to fly. -
He became fascinated by electricity
At sixteen he was given the chance to learn how to be a telegraph operator, and he became as fascinated by electricity as he had been with chemistry -
Inventor
By the age of 21 he had changed from an experimenter to inventor. -
He moved to New Jersey
In 1876 he moved to New Jersey, to a longer place where he could expand his work. He established his own research centre there. -
The Phonograph
He introduced his first great invention, the phonograph, to the world. -
The First Incandescent Light
He showed his greatest invention, the first incandescent light that was practical for society to use. Other inventors had produced electric lighting in laboratories, but none produced lights that were long-lasting enough to be sold to consumers. -
His Death
On the day he died, the American President asked everyone in America to turn off their electric lights for one hour, as a tribute to his genius.