Thomas Alva Edison
"Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration." - Thomas Alva Edison, Harper's Monthly (September 1931)
Born: February 11, 1847
Milan, Ohio
Died: October 18, 1931 (aged 84)
West Orange, New Jersey
Occupation: Inventor, entrepreneur
Spouse: Mary Edison, Mina Edison
Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847 – October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman who developed many devices which greatly influenced life around the world. Dubbed "The Wizard of Menlo Park" by a newspaper reporter, he was one of the first inventors to apply the principles of mass production to the process of invention, and therefore is often credited with the creation of the first industrial research laboratory.
Some of his inventions were not completely original but amounted to improvements of earlier inventions. Also, many of the inventions attributed to him were actually created by one or more of the numerous employees working under his direction. Nevertheless, Edison is considered one of the most prolific inventors in history, holding 1,093 U.S. patents in his name, as well as many patents in the United Kingdom, France and Germany.
Edison's birthplace
Thomas Edison was born in Milan, Ohio, 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.[1]