Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions, which include the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and early versions of the electric light bulb, have had a widespread impact on the modern industrialized world. He was one of the first inventors to apply the principles of organized science and teamwork to the process of invention, working with many researchers and employees. He established the first industrial research laboratory.
Mount Carmel is a borough in Northumberland County, located in the Coal Heritage Region of Central Pennsylvania's Susquehanna River Valley, United States. The population was 5,725 at the 2020 census. It is located 88 miles (141 km) northwest of Philadelphia and 71 miles (114 km) northeast of Harrisburg, in the Coal Region. It is completely encircled by Mount Carmel Township.
Shamokin is a city in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Surrounded by Coal Township at the western edge of the Anthracite Coal Region in central Pennsylvania's Susquehanna River Valley, the city was named after a Saponi Indian village, Schahamokink. At the 2020 United States census, the population was 6,942.
Sunbury is a city and the county seat of Northumberland County in Pennsylvania, United States. Located in the Susquehanna Valley, Sunbury is positioned on the east bank of the Susquehanna River.
Shamokin Dam is a borough in Snyder County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,647 at the 2020 census.
The war of the currents was a series of events surrounding the introduction of competing electric power transmission systems in the late 1880s and early 1890s. It grew out of two lighting systems developed in the late 1870s and early 1880s; arc lamp street lighting running on high-voltage alternating current (AC), and large-scale low-voltage direct current (DC) indoor incandescent lighting being marketed by Thomas Edison's company. In 1886, the Edison system was faced with new competition: an alternating current system initially introduced by George Westinghouse's company that used transformers to step down from a high voltage so AC could be used for indoor lighting. Using high voltage allowed an AC system to transmit power over longer distances from more efficient large central generating stations. As the use of AC spread rapidly with other companies deploying their own systems, the Edison Electric Light Company claimed in early 1888 that high voltages used in an alternating current system were hazardous, and that the design was inferior to, and infringed on the patents behind, their direct current system.
Frank Julian Sprague was an American inventor who contributed to the development of the electric motor, electric railways, and electric elevators. His contributions were especially important in promoting urban development by increasing the size cities could reasonably attain and by allowing greater concentration of business in commercial sections. He became known as the "father of electric traction". Demonstrating an aptitude for science and mathematics, Sprague secured an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in 1874 and, after graduation in 1878 and 2 years at sea, resigned to pursue his career in electrical engineering.
Pearl Street Station was Thomas Edison's first commercial power plant in the United States. It was located at 255–257 Pearl Street in the Financial District of Manhattan in New York City, just south of Fulton Street on a site measuring 50 by 100 feet. The station was built by the Edison Illuminating Company, under the direction of Francis Upton, hired by Thomas Edison.
The Boston Edison Company (BECo) was incorporated as the Edison Electric Illuminating Company of Boston in 1886. It was one of the earliest electric utility companies in the United States of America. The company was formally renamed the Boston Edison Company in June 1937, although it had also been previously known by this name informally.
The Hartford Electric Light Company (HELCO) is a defunct electrical company that was located on Pearl Street in Hartford, Connecticut. HELCO merged with the Connecticut Power Company in 1958. These merged with the Connecticut Light and Power Company (CL&P) and the Western Massachusetts Electric Company (WMECO) in 1966 to form Northeast Utilities (NU). Its former corporate headquarters building and main facility are in the Ann Street Historic District.
Alex Dow was an American mechanical and electrical engineer for the city of Detroit. He served as president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in the year 1928-1929.
The Vulcan Street Plant was the first Edison hydroelectric central station. The plant was built on the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin, and put into operation on September 30, 1882. According to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Vulcan Street plant is considered to be "the first hydro-electric central station to serve a system of private and commercial customers in North America". It is a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark, an IEEE milestone and a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.
The Willis Avenue Station is a steam production plant used in Detroit's district steam heating system. The plant is located at 50 West Willis Street, near Woodward Avenue, in the center of the city's Midtown Detroit neighborhood. Built and owned by the Detroit Edison Company, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.
John William Lieb was an American electrical engineer for the Edison Electric Light Company. Lieb was president of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers from 1904 to 1905. He received the IEEE Edison Medal for "the development and operation of electric central stations for illumination and power."
Brockton Edison Electric Illuminating Company Power Station or "Brockton Edison Company - Old Power Station" is a historic power plant at 70 School Street in Brockton, Massachusetts. It was one of the earliest power plants built by Thomas Edison.
St. Edward's Catholic Church, located in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, was constructed in the late nineteenth century. Its congregation grew out of earlier Shamokin churches and served the men that worked on the Danville and Pottsville Railroad. With Edward the Confessor as its patron saint, the first St. Edward's Catholic Church was built and then dedicated in 1840. In August 1866, a parish was established and its first pastor was appointed in September of that year. A larger church was completed by Thanksgiving 1866.
Holborn Viaduct power station, named the Edison Electric Light Station, was the world's first coal-fired power station generating electricity for public use. It was built at number 57 Holborn Viaduct in central London, by Thomas Edison's Edison Electric Light Company.
William Joseph Hammer was an American pioneer electrical engineer, aviator, and president of the Edison Pioneers.
The Excelsior Power Company Building is a residential building at 33–43 Gold Street in the Financial District of Manhattan in New York City. It was designed in the Romanesque Revival style by William C. Gunnell and built by Robert L. Darragh. Completed in 1889, it is Manhattan's oldest known remaining building erected specifically for commercial power generation.
