The Papers of Thomas A. Edison

FAIN: RQ-50364-09

Rutgers University (New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8559)
Paul B. Israel (Project Director: November 2008 to June 2012)

Preparation for the print publication of Volumes 7 and 8 of the papers of inventor Thomas A. Edison, covering the period of July 1883 through December 1887. (36 months)

The Papers of Thomas A. Edison is a fifteen-volume book edition that will contain 6,500 transcribed and annotated letters, notebook entries, experimental drawings, legal agreements, equipment specifications, marketing plans, autobiographical writings, and other documents from Edison's lengthy career. This proposal seeks funding to complete "Losses and Loyalties" (Volume 7, July 1883 - December 1884) and to work on "New Beginnings" (Volume 8, January 1885 - December 1887). These volumes cover the pioneering era of the electrical industry founded on Edison's technical and business contributions and provide a detailed picture of the day-to-day struggles and innovations that delivered electric light and power into the world marketplace. During this period Edison also survives the crises of his first wife's death, remarries, returns to work on telecommunications technology, and opens his last and largest research and development laboratory.

Media Coverage

Edison Illuminated (Review)
Author(s): Edmund Morris
Publication: New York Times: The Seventh Volume of Thomas Edison's Papers
Date: 3/23/2012
Abstract: Cover review by Edmund Morris in the Sunday New York Times Book Review.
URL: http://http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/25/books/review/the-seventh-volume-of-thomas-edisons-papers

In Search of Thomas Edison (Media Coverage)
Publication: Rutgers Magazine
Date: 6/1/2011
Abstract: Article about director and editor Paul Israel and the editing of the Edison Papers and how the project is supported.
URL: http://http://magazine.rutgers.edu/features/spring-2011/in-search-of-thomas-edison

Rutgers project uncovers rare facts hidden in millions of pages of Thomas Edison's notes (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Nic Corbett
Publication: Newark Star Ledger
Date: 1/11/2012
Abstract: Discusses discoveries some of the key discoveries in Volume 7 and how the project is funded.
URL: http://http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/01/rutgers_project_uncovers_rare.html

Thomas Edison's first wife may have died of a morphine overdose (Media Coverage)
Publication: Phys.org
Date: 11/16/2011
Abstract: Article based on Rutgers Media Relations Research Highlight about the new information contained in Volume 7 about the death of Edison's first wife.
URL: http://http://phys.org/news/2011-11-thomas-edison-wife-died-morphine.html

Thomas Edison’s First Wife May Have Died of a Morphine Overdose (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Ken Branson
Publication: Rutgers Media Relations Research Highlight
Date: 11/15/2011
Abstract: Research Highlight about the research for Volume 7 that led to new information and interpretation of the death of Edison's first wife.
URL: http://http://news.rutgers.edu/medrel/research/rh-2011/thomas-edison2019s-f-20111115

Was Jobs an Edison for our time? (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Paul Israel
Publication: cnn.com
Date: 10/6/2011
Abstract: Essay by director and editor Paul Israel comparing Edison and Steve Jobs.
URL: http://articles.cnn.com/2011-10-06/opinion/opinion_israel-steve-jobs-edison

11 Thomas Edison Predictions That Came True—Or Didn't (Media Coverage)
Author(s):
Date: 2/11/2011
Abstract: National Geographic website article about Edison's predictions from a 1911 Cosmopolitan interview.

Associated Products

The Papers of Thomas A. Edison, Volume 7: Losses and Loyalties, April 1883-December 1884 (Book)
Title: The Papers of Thomas A. Edison, Volume 7: Losses and Loyalties, April 1883-December 1884
Author: Thomas A. Edison
Editor: David Hochfelder
Editor: Paul B. Israel
Editor: Louis Carlat
Editor: Theresa M. Collins
Abstract: Seeking to replicate the success of his New York electric central station throughout the United States and in Europe and Latin America, Thomas A. Edison vowed to become a "business man for a year." This bold decision began a remarkable transition period for America's greatest inventive thinker. The seventh volume of Edison's papers chronicles the profound changes in his professional and personal life, including the unexpected death of his wife. It concludes with Edison returning to the laboratory to develop new communications technology.
Year: 2011
Primary URL: http://www.worldcat.org/title/papers-of-thomas-a-edison/oclc/17951299&referer=brief_results
Primary URL Description: WorldCat listing
Secondary URL: http://jhupbooks.press.jhu.edu/ecom/MasterServlet/GetItemDetailsHandler?iN=9781421400907&qty=1&source=2&viewMode=3&loggedIN=false&JavaScript=y
Secondary URL Description: Publisher's listing
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Type: Scholarly Edition
ISBN: 9781421400907

Electrifying Newburgh (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Electrifying Newburgh
Abstract: Dr. Paul Israel will talk about Edison's efforts to install a central station plant in Newburgh, NY.
Author: Paul Israel
Date: 06/23/2013
Location: Newburgh Heritage Center, Newburgh, NY

Innovate Like Edison (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Innovate Like Edison
Abstract: Dr. Paul Israel will give a talk on lessons from Edison about the process of invention and innovation.
Author: Paul Israel
Date: 06/26/2011
Location: Thomas Edison National Historical Park, West Orange, NJ

Edison as Innovator (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Edison as Innovator
Abstract: Dr. Paul Israel will give a talk on Edison as an innovator and lead a tour of Edison's West Orange Laboratory.
Author: Paul Israel
Date: 04/04/2011
Location: Thomas Edison National Historical Park, West Orange, NJ

Innumerable Machines in My Mind (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Innumerable Machines in My Mind
Abstract: Our speaker, Paul Israel, has made the study of American invention and innovation his specialty. He earned his Ph.D. in history at Rutgers, and today he is the Director and General Editor of the Thomas A. Edison Papers. To date, the project has produced six volumes of The Papers of Thomas A. Edison as well as an online edition with nearly 200,000 document images. We’ll visit that online site with him, and he’ll describe for us the mammoth enterprise that involves his staff of a dozen editors and assistants.
Author: Paul Israel
Date: 10/12/2010
Location: Rutgers University

Memorializing Menlo Park (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Memorializing Menlo Park
Abstract: Dr. Paul Israel will discuss the history of efforts to memorialize Edison's work at Menlo Park.
Author: Paul Israel
Date: 05/16/2010
Location: Thomas Edison Center at Menlo Park, Edison, NJ

Edison's New Jersey (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Edison's New Jersey
Abstract: Dr. Paul Israel will discuss Thomas Edison's impact on the state of New Jersey and the many places in the state that are associated with him.
Author: Paul Israel
Date: 02/12/2010
Location: Bloomfield Presbyterian Church, Bloomfield, NJ

Interpreting Menlo Park (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Interpreting Menlo Park
Abstract: Dr. Paul Israel will discuss the history of Menlo Park, NJ, from its origins as a speculative housing development to the erection of the Edison Memorial Tower. His talk will focus on Edison's famous laboratory and he will discuss what happened to the site Edison left.
Author: Paul Israel
Date: 02/25/2010
Location: Public Library, Edison, NJ

Thomas Edison’s Places of Invention (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: Thomas Edison’s Places of Invention
Author: Paul Israel
Abstract: When we think about places of invention we tend to think of those places where an inventor did his or her most important work or mature work. In the case of Thomas Edison this is usually his Menlo Park Laboratory and secondarily his later laboratory in West Orange, New Jersey. However, these laboratories were not isolated places. Instead they were part of larger networks of places that contributed in a variety of ways to the inventive activity at the labs. Furthermore, the creation of these laboratories drew on and embodied aspects of earlier places in Edison's career. In order to understand the inventive work that took place in these laboratories we need to examine their relationship to these other places. At the same time, by looking at the range of inventive places in which Edison worked during his career we can also gain deeper insight into how particular places contributed to specific types of inventive work. In this paper I will focus on the ways in which Edison's early experiences helped to shape his more his more famous laboratories and his inventive practices.
Date: 10/17/2009
Conference Name: Society for the History of Technology Annual Meeting

The Role of Place in Thomas Edison's Inventive Career (Conference/Institute/Seminar)
Title: The Role of Place in Thomas Edison's Inventive Career
Author: Paul Israel
Abstract: Dr. Israel discusses Edison’s early career and the range of places in which he worked. These early experiences directly influenced Edison’s most important work at the Menlo Park and West Orange, New Jersey laboratories which drew on and embodied aspects of earlier places in Edison's career.
Date Range: 11/7/2009
Location: National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

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