Save America's Treasures - Project Profile

June 1999

Thomas Edison Invention Factory
Thomas Edison National Historic Site
West Orange, New Jersey

homas Alva Edison was one of the Nation’s most prolific inventors. Over half of his 1,093 patents were earned during 44 years of work at his Invention Factory in West Orange, New Jersey, which he opened in 1887. The factory is actually a complex of several buildings including a chemistry laboratory, machine shop, and library where Edison did his research. It also includes a replica of the world’s first building constructed as a motion picture studio, the Black Maria, which was part of the complex from 1893 until 1903.

General Electric Company — the corporate descendant of Thomas A. Edison — has donated $5 million to help preserve and restore Edison’s historic Invention Factory. First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton announced this gift during her 1998 Save America’s Treasures tour of the Northeast. General Electric chairman and CEO John F. Welch, who joined Mrs. Clinton for the announcement, said that "Thomas Edison was not only the inventor of the light bulb and the father of GE, his inventions were also critical in developing industries ranging from power generation to sound recording to the movies. It is impossible to imagine the 20^th century without him. GE is proud to help restore and preserve the laboratories where he earned more than half of his 1,093 patents. We hope Edison’s legacy will inspire future generations as much as he’s inspired us at GE."

Facts About Edison

A vintage photo of Thomas A. Edison in his Invention Factory, West Orange, N.J. Photo courtesy of Edison National Historic Site.

Thomas Alva Edison was born February 11, 1847, in Milan, Ohio. He grew up there and in Port Huron, Michigan. As a child, he set up a chemistry lab in the basement, but was not considered a good student by teachers so he relied on his mother and himself for education. Edison also lost much of his hearing in youth but did not consider this a "handicap" and said that it was rather an advantage as it gave him more time to think because he did not have to listen to foolish "small talk."

Edison learned how to use a telegraph while working with a stationmaster and this knowledge allowed Edison to work around the country as an operator. His first patent was for the electric vote recorder but no one was interested in buying it so his focus became commercially viable inventions. His first commercial invention was an improvement of the stock ticker. In 1877 he invented the phonograph and in 1878, the electric light. He earned patents for the carbon telephone transmitter and the motion-picture projector.

Thomas Edison also had a hand in starting the "movies." His ideas, combined with George Eastman's development of photographic film, eventually evolved into the multi-billion dollar motion picture industry of today. At first, however, the movies were crude, silent and only about 40 to 80 seconds long. As the sun was the primary source of lighting at that time, Edison constructed the Black Maria, a mobile motion picture studio built on a circular track so that it could easily be turned to face the sun.

Profits from motion pictures and the phonograph kept him in business during the 1890's when he lost millions on an iron ore mine in New Jersey, which used machines to crush boulders and magnets to draw out the ore. The invention worked but was not commercially viable due to its cost.

In December 1914, fire swept through most of the West Orange factories but they were rehabilitated and work continued. By 1925, half of the people living in cities were using electric power in their homes. In 1928, Congress awarded Edison a special honorary medal. Thomas Edison died October 18, 1931. Edison’s most famous quote is "Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration."

Preservation Needs

Edison’s notes and drawings.

The Edison National Historic Site houses over 400,000 artifacts and 5 million pages of paper, including Edison's letters and lab notes. The collection includes manufactured goods such as Edison phonographs and radios, motion picture projectors, electric lighting equipment, "Edicraft" kitchen appliances, primary and storage batteries, telephone and telegraph apparatus, spare parts, the products of Edison's competitors, and a replica of the first structure built for motion picture filming.

Edison's prototypes, valuable notes, and photographs are decomposing because they lack proper storage and climate control, and many are close to being lost before being catalogued. A new visitor’s center is proposed to adequately house the artifacts and papers, provide an auditorium, and upgrade the education program for the 85,000 visitors who visit the factory every year.

Related Resources

Edison National Historic Site: This site is dedicated to the preservation and restoration of Thomas A. Edison's laboratory and home and to the appreciation of Edison the man and his achievements. Includes background information on Edison and his inventions, his home Glenmont, artifact collections and tourist information.

Edison Birthplace Museum: The site of Edison’s birth in Milan, Ohio, is now a museum that features a collection of rare Edisonia, including examples of many of Edison's early inventions, documents and family mementos.

Edison Boyhood Home: This site discusses Thomas Edison's early life in Port Huron, Michigan, the archaeological search for his boyhood home, and the artifacts recovered.

Edison-Ford Winter Estates: During the winter Edison and his wife would travel to his home in Fort Myers, Florida. This site includes a brief biography of Edison and his winter home, which housed a chemistry lab where he would continue work on his experiments.

Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village: In the 1920's with Thomas Edison's consent, Henry Ford took Edison's Menlo Park Laboratory buildings and moved them to Dearborn, Michigan to be a part of his Greenfield Village historical museum.

National Inventor's Hall of Fame: Thomas Alva Edison was the first inductee into the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame in 1973.

Thomas A. Edison Papers Project: A documentary editing project directed by Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, to organize and publish a select edition of the papers of Thomas Alva Edison.