The Thomas A. Edison Papers Digital Edition

Series Notes : Part IV

Part I (1850-1878) · Part II (1879-1886) · Part III (1887-1898) · Part IV (1899-1910) · Part V (1911-1919)

The never-before-published material contained in Part IV captures Edison's life and accomplishments in the early 20th century, reaffirming the inventor's importance to industrial society and modern life. Some 100,000 pages of correspondence, promotional literature, news clippings, family records, financial data, and documentation of experimental, corporate, and legal activities show a man of great power, energy, and influence. Edison patented new inventions, promoted their development, and started new companies while actively managing his laboratory, manufacturing, and commercial interests.

The collection documents how Edison's energies focused on developing a new alkaline battery for electric vehicles, while he also maintained his interest in continuous process manufacturing, turning to the manufacture of cement, where his innovations included energy-saving breakthroughs in the roasting phase of production. His designs to use poured concrete for affordable, quickly fabricated housing presaged the development of prefabricated buildings. At the same time, Edison was a major player in the nascent entertainment industries. His National Phonograph Company was a leading producer of phonographs and records. His film company released The Great Train Robbery, the first blockbuster in motion picture history. However, Edison failed in his efforts to stabilize the production and distibution of films - and to dominate the industry - through exclusive licensing and formation of the Motion Picture Patents Company, which the federal government declared an illegal monopoly in 1915.

In the table below, you can find links to item sets within this website on the left, and to the PDF versions hosted on the Internet Archive on the right.