Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison The Official page of the Thomas Edison - Inventor, Entrepreneur, Disruptor. Managed by the Edison Family Foundations
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Edison believed progress shouldn't stop at the museum door.In 1916, he found himself in the middle of a debate that feel...
06/24/2026

Edison believed progress shouldn't stop at the museum door.

In 1916, he found himself in the middle of a debate that feels surprisingly modern. Should one of America's most treasured historic homes stay authentic, or become safer?

George Washington's Mount Vernon was still lit by kerosene lamps and candles. The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association worried that installing electricity would compromise the historic character they had worked so hard to preserve.

As one member wrote, electricity seemed "most incongruous in this antique home." But others worried about fire hazards.

When Edison visited Mount Vernon in September 1916, he inspected the Mansion and proposed a solution. His company offered to install a battery-powered lighting system, separate from the local power grid, complete with what Edison called a "guarantee of absolute safety."

The following year, Mount Vernon was electrified using an Edison-designed storage battery system. đź’ˇ While that original system has long since been replaced, pieces of it still survive in Mount Vernon's collections today.

Edison's visit wasn't entirely business, though. After touring the grounds and learning about earlier commemorative tree plantings, he asked if he could plant one himself.

Today, historic sites still wrestle with the same question Mount Vernon faced all those years ago...How do you preserve the past while embracing the future?

📸 Thomas Edison at Mount Vernon, September 1916.

Thomas Edison and his son kept score. 🎣Not of patents.Not of inventions.Of fish!When Edison escaped to Fort Myers, Flori...
06/16/2026

Thomas Edison and his son kept score. 🎣

Not of patents.

Not of inventions.

Of fish!

When Edison escaped to Fort Myers, Florida, some of his favorite days were spent on the water with his son Charles.

The rules were simple: whoever caught the most fish, and the greatest variety of species, won.

Years later, Charles still remembered those contests. He recalled that his father preferred catching smaller fish, a detail that may have helped keep the competition interesting.

Of all the places they fished, Charles remembered Yellow Creek most fondly. It was one of his father's favorite spots, where Edison regularly caught bass. Hoping for the same luck, Charles later returned with his wife.

He didn't catch a thing, but his wife caught both a jack and a snook.

A local newspaper once wrote that Edison approached fishing with "the keen zest of a kid playing hooky from school."

It's a surprising image.

One where one of the most famous inventors in history wasn't in a laboratory...

But when he was sitting beside his son, watching the water, hoping for one more fish than the other guy.

10,000 attempts. One breakthrough. đź’ˇ
06/11/2026

10,000 attempts. One breakthrough. đź’ˇ

Edison’s greatest invention may not have been a product at all. It was the modern research lab.Before him, most inventor...
06/01/2026

Edison’s greatest invention may not have been a product at all.

It was the modern research lab.

Before him, most inventors worked alone or in small workshops.

Edison imagined something bigger.

At Menlo Park and later West Orange, he brought together some of the world’s best chemists, machinists, engineers, mathematicians, glassblowers, and designers to work side by side solving problems together.

Ideas moved fast, failures were expected, and breakthroughs came from people working together. Even dinner looked like a brainstorming session!

It looked less like history and more like the future:
đź’» Apple
🚀 SpaceX
🧠 Silicon Valley

The idea that innovation happens when talented people from different fields work under one roof became a blueprint for how modern technology is developed.

Still one of the best reminders about innovation đź’ˇ
05/29/2026

Still one of the best reminders about innovation đź’ˇ

Thomas Edison never attended college, but he did earn 9 honorary degrees, including 2 from Rutgers. 🎓In 1922, Rutgers ho...
05/27/2026

Thomas Edison never attended college, but he did earn 9 honorary degrees, including 2 from Rutgers. 🎓

In 1922, Rutgers honored Edison for what they called his “splendid achievements in the cause of civilization,” recognizing the impact his inventions had on everyday life.

What makes that story interesting is not just the recognition itself, but what it says about education.

Edison learned by experimenting.
By asking questions.
By failing constantly and trying again.
His laboratories = his classrooms.

Years later, universities across the country recognized in Edison the same qualities today's graduates carry with them: curiosity, resilience, and the drive to keep learning.

As graduation season reminds us, some of the most important learning happens long after the diploma.

Congratulations to the Class of 2026, and to the curiosity, resilience, and ambition that will shape whatever comes next!

05/26/2026

What does the future of innovation look like? Look no further than this year's Thomas Edison Pitch Contest. đź’ˇ

It looks like students building AI-powered fall detection systems, portable IV technology for war zones, advanced school safety systems, and wearable devices designed to protect people in real time.

Many of this year’s inventions shared the same belief at their core: technology should make us more human, not less. Students used innovation not to replace people, but to better protect, support, and empower them.

This year, more than 750 students from 90 schools across 26 states and four countries took part in the 16th Annual Thomas Edison Pitch Contest, with 9 finalist teams presenting their inventions at Thomas Edison National Historical Park in West Orange, New Jersey.

Congratulations to all finalists, schools, mentors, and families who helped bring these ideas to life. 🏆

Menlo Park City School District STEM School Highlands Ranch Millburn Township Public Schools Ridgewood High School Ridgewood Public Schools Cedarlane Academy, K-8 Santa Clara Unified School District Emerson Public Schools Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District Cambridge Elementary School - SBSD

Some gave their ideas. Some gave their time. Some gave everything. This Memorial Day, we honor the men and women who los...
05/25/2026

Some gave their ideas. Some gave their time. Some gave everything.

This Memorial Day, we honor the men and women who lost their lives serving the United States, and remember that the freedoms and opportunities we enjoy today were built through extraordinary sacrifice.

During World War I, Thomas Edison was asked to help support America’s military through innovation, a reminder that progress and service have long been connected in the American story.

Today, we remember those who never returned home, and honor the courage and sacrifice that continue to shape this nation. 🇺🇸

In an age of endless ideas, ex*****on still wins. đź’ˇ
05/19/2026

In an age of endless ideas, ex*****on still wins. đź’ˇ

05/11/2026

Did you know Thomas Edison was homeschooled?

As the story goes, young Tom was the kind of kid who turned the family basement into a laboratory.

The house reportedly filled with strange smells from experiments.
There were small explosions.
Stacks of books everywhere.

He read his way through local libraries and even started selling candy and newspapers on trains as a young teenager.

Clearly, Edison experienced the world a little differently.

And while his father worried about what was happening downstairs, his mother, Nancy Edison, encouraged it instead of shutting it down.

She pushed him to stay curious.
To learn through experience.
To read broadly.
To keep experimenting.

That approach shaped not only the inventor Edison became, but the way he approached life for decades afterward, constantly testing ideas, recording observations, and chasing new ways to improve the world around him.

Years later, Edison still credited his mother for his success:

“My mother was the making of me. If it had not been for her appreciation and her faith in me at a critical time, I should very likely never have been an inventor.”

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