Thomas Alfa Edison

Thomas Edison Was Born In Milan, Ohio, And Was Raised In Port Huron, Michigan. He Was The Seventh And Last Child Of Samuel Ogden Edison, Jr. (1804–1896) (Born In Marshalltown, Nova Scotia, Canada) And Nancy Matthews Edison Nee Elliott (1810–1871). His Family Was Of Dutch Origin.

In School, The Young Edison’s Mind Often Wandered, And His Teacher, The Reverend Engle, Was Overheard Calling Him “Addled.” This Ended Edison’s Three Months Of Official Schooling. He Recalled Later, “My Mother Was The Making Of Me. She Was So True, So Sure Of Me; And I Felt I Had Something To Live For, Someone I Must Not Disappoint.” His Mother Then Home Schooled Him. Much Of His Education Came From Reading R.G. Parker’s School Of Natural Philosophy And The Cooper Union.

Edison Developed Hearing Problems At An Early Age. The Cause Of Edison’s Deafness Has Been Attributed To A Bout Of Scarlet Fever During Childhood And Recurring Untreated Middle Ear Infections. Around The Middle Of His Career Edison Attributed The Hearing Loss To Being Struck On The Ears By A Train Conductor When His Chemical Lab In A Boxcar Caught Fire, And Was Thrown Of The Train In Smiths Creek, Michigan, Along With His Apparatus And Chemicals. In His Later Years He Modified The Story To Say The Injury Occurred When The Conductor, In Helping Him Onto A Moving Train, Lifted Him By The Ears.

Edison’s Family Was Forced To Move To Port Huron, Michigan, When The Railroad Bypassed Milan In 1854, But His Life There Was Bittersweet. He Sold Candy And Newspapers On Trains Running From Port Huron To Detroit, As Well As Vegetables That He Sold To Supplement His Income. This Began Edison’s Long Streak Of Entrepreneurial Ventures As He Discovered His Talents As A Businessman. These Talents Would Eventually Lead Him To Found General Electric, Which Is Still A Publicly Traded Company, And 13 Other Companies.

Edison Became A Telegraph Operator After He Saved Three-Year-Old Jimmie Mackenzie From Being Struck By A Runaway Train. Jimmie’s Father, Station Agent J.U. Mackenzie Of Mount Clemens, Michigan, Was So Grateful That He Trained Edison As A Telegraph Operator. Edison’s First Telegraphy Job Away From Port Huron Was At Stratford Junction, Ontario, On The Grand Trunk Railway. In 1866, At The Age Of 19, Thomas Edison Moved To Louisville, Kentucky, Where As An Employee Of Western Union He Worked The Associated Press Bureau News Wire. Edison Requested The Night Shift At Work Which Allowed Him Plenty Of Time To Spend At His Two Favorite Pastimes — Reading And Experimenting. Eventually, The Latter Pre-Occupation Cost Him His Job. One Night In 1867, He Was Working With A Battery When He Spilled Sulphuric Acid Onto The Floor. It Ran Between The Floorboards And Onto His Boss’ Desk Below. The Next Morning He Was Fired,

One Of His Mentors During Those Early Years Was A Fellow Telegrapher And Inventor Named Franklin Leonard Pope, Who Allowed The Impoverished Youth To Live And Work In The Basement Of His Elizabeth, New Jersey, Home.

Some Of Edison’s Earliest Inventions Were Related To Telegraphy, Including A Stock Ticker. His First Patent Was For The Electric Vote Recorder, (U. S. Patent 90,646), Which Was Granted On June 1, 1869.