All throughout American history there has many intelligent individuals that have played significant role in our society. I believe Thomas Edison has been one of the most influential people. He was an American inventor who is considered one of America’s leading businessman. People today credit him for helping to build America’s economy during the nation’s vulnerable early years. Thomas had a very good childhood and was a very hard worker as a teenager. He invented the universal stock printer and he perfected the lightbulb. Thomas Alva Edison was born February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio. He was born the youngest of seven siblings to Samuel and Nancy Edison. His father was an political activist from Canada, and his mother was an excellent school teacher and she was one of the biggest influences in Thomas’s life. When Thomas was seven his family packed up and moved to Port Huron, Michigan. He began attending public school there, but his teachers claimed him to be a distracted and very hyper child. His teachers claimed that he was very difficult to handle, and his mother took him out of public school and began teaching him herself. When Thomas turned 11, he had a wide range of knowledge and read every book he could find. Thomas began teaching himself and this would have a huge impact on him throughout the rest of his life. At the age 12 Thomas began his very first job. He began selling newspapers along the Grand Truck Railroad Line. Many believe that the reason why he a has such