Thomas Alva Edison was born on February 11, 1847 to Samuel Edison Jr. and Nancy Elliott. He was born in Milan, Ohio, but grew up in Port Huron. Thomas was the seventh and last child of his father. Ancestrally, his family was Dutch. At this time, rail systems were expanding and cities were becoming more industrial, especially in the north. Edison grew up in this period of rapid change and technological advancement. Thomas Edison was the essence of the American Dream due to his rough early life, intelligence and successfulness, and his contributions to society.
Thomas Edison grew up in Port Huron, Michigan. While later in his life he was very intelligent, he only attended school for a few months and was taught mainly by his mother. He enjoyed reading books on philosophy and science at a young age. His family was very poor, so once the railroad reached Port Huron, Edison began working and selling candy and newspapers at the age of nine on the daily train to and from Detroit. Because the train reached Detroit in the morning and returned at night, Edison spent his days in the reading room of the young men’s association in Detroit. Later, he obtained the right to sell
…show more content…
His first invention that gained him public attention was the phonograph, the earliest version of a record player. His next major development was the creation of a research lab built in Menlo Park. Starting with the founding of the Edison Electric Light Company in New York City, Edison began working on electrical lighting, hoping to compete with gas and oil lights. Edison’s first successful light bulb used a carbon filament on October 22, 1879 and it lasted for 13.5 hours. He eventually filed a patent on November 4, 1879 for an electric lamp using “a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected to platina contact wires” and was the first practical electric light. Later, he discovered a carbonized bamboo filament could last over 1,200