Thomas+Edison



Bellmer and Hardy 1 Grace Bellmer and John Hardy Ms. Karen Chase ENG 322 1 April 2009 Thomas Edison: An Annotated Bibliography //Thomas Edison (// //February 11, 1847 – October 18, 1931) was one of the most celebrated inventors and businessmen of his time. His name is still heard today when one mentions such things as the phonograph and light bulb. Edison was born in Milan, Ohio, but grew up in Port Huron, Michigan. He was one of seven children. Public schooling was not easy for Edison and his mind often wandered in class. After only three months of public schooling, his mother took him out and homeschooled him for the remainder of his childhood. However, most of the knowledge Edison retained came from books like __School of Natural Philosophy__ and __The Cooper Union__. He had a variety of jobs as a young adult but none seemed to be the right one for him. Eventually Edison settled down and married Mary Stilwell, with whom he fathered three children. When she died of a brain tumor some years later he remarried Mina Miller. He fathered two children with her. Edison is best known for his inventing of the phonograph. It had tin foil and used a ridged cylinder but had very poor sound quality. Later, his invention would be perfected by Alexander Graham Bell, Chichester Bell, and Charles Tainter. Edison is also credited with the invention of the electric light bulb. He also sparked the beginning of the movie industry with his invention of the kinetoscope, a device used to portray motion. All in all, by his death on October 18, 1931, Edison had been credited with 1,093 inventions.//

Bellis, Mary. "The Inventions of Thomas Edison." About.com. 1 April 2009. .

This source highlights a few of Edison's inventions. While it does not list all of his patents, it describes, in detail, what the author considers Edison'smost important inventions. Some that are descirbed on the page include the phonograph, the lightbulb, and the kinetoscope. There is also a short biography on Edison that wraps up the article.

Stross, Randall E. __The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Alva Edison Invented the Modern World__. New York: Random House, 2005.

This book provides information on Thomas Edison's life at Menlo Park. This was where he spent most of his time as an inventor and where he attained some of his most famous inventions, such as the lightbulb, the phonograph, and the kinetoscope. Thomas Alva Edison was am inventor that truly chnaged the world with his inventions.

"Thomas Alva Edison Biography." __The Thomas Edison Papers__. 23 March 2009. Rutgers University. 13 April 2009. .

Rutgers University provides a site with a wealth of information on the life of Thomas Alva Edison. It has a very expansive biography of Edison's life, including his early life, early inventive career, career at Menlo Park and West Orange Laboratory, along with information on his later years. In other sections of the website, Edison's inventions and patents are listed along with their dates.

"Welcome to Edison's Homepage." __Thomas Alva Edison__. Ed. Gerald Beals. 11 February 1997. 13 April 2009. .

This website offers a great amount of information regarding Thomas Alva Edison and his life. There is a biography section that talks about Edison's life and his inventions. Another section offers quotes from the famous inventor about some of his inventions. There is also a photo gallery that includes many different pictures of Edison himself.

