On November 4, 1879, Thomas Edison filed for a patent for an electric lamp using carbon filaments. Edison’s patent, which became the first commercially successful, long-lasting light bulb, changed the way people across the world live and work—with the flip of a switch. Soon, electricity became a business in and of itself, with Edison and the American engineering mogul George Westinghouse bringing electric power to cities across America. Supported by innovative scientists and engineers like Nikola Tesla, this booming new industry shaped twentieth-century American culture and industry. This primary source set explores the development, commercialization, and impact of electricity.
Excerpts of data from Forty Years of Edison Service, 1882-1922; Outlining the Growth and Development of the Edison System in New York City.
Excerpts from Recipes for Cooking by Electricity, issued by the New York Edison Company, which introduced customers to electric appliances.
A 1906 map of New York City showing the United Electric Light and Power Company lines.
A 1910 catalog of Edison-Lalande batteries and other electric appliances produced by the Edison Manufacturing Company.
An excerpt from the 1930 book Edison as I Know Him, written by Henry Ford, detailing the “debt” America owes to Edison for his work.
A clipping of “Sketches in Edison’s Laboratory” including the “mechanism employed in producing his electric light.”
A catalog page from the early 1900s showing shades for electric lamps.
A photograph of Fifth Avenue in New York City illuminated by electric light, 1913.
An illustration of “bathing by electric light,” 1880.
An illustration of “electric light.”
An electric motor for alternating current by Westinghouse Electric, 1888.
A photograph of Westinghouse equipment.
A photograph of the World’s Fair Pan-American Exposition buildings lit up by electric light, 1901.
“Petaluma’s pride,” an 1898 atlas article describing a California power company.
Drawing of the Incandescent Light Bulb by Thomas Edison, 1880.
