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The generator was turned on and the street was lit with electricity. This was a huge success for Edison in proving his theory of a central generator station supplying power in bulk. People thronged to Menlo Park to see his inventions first hand. The first floor of the laboratory constantly entertained business men and investors who came to invest in Edison’s projects. Thomas Edison created some the world’s most important and some of his greatest inventions at Menlo Park. While headquartered there, he applied for about 400 patents on inventions big and small.
Their first child was Marion Estelle, born on February 18, 1873, who Edison affectionately called “Dot”. They had two other children after Marion, Thomas Alva Jr. born January 10, 1876, called “Dash,” and William Leslie born October 26, 1878. By 1876, Edison decided to move away from the city and into a larger space where he could expand his operations to include a large scale inventions workshop. Middlesex County College is home to the Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Technologies, an engineering-based high school, which is part of the Middlesex County Vocational and Technical Schools. The high school is covered by tax dollars and so there is no additional cost for all Middlesex County residents, but admission is based on a test, past grades, and other academic and extracurricular activities. About 160 students, 40 per grade from around the county attend the Academy.
Thomas Edison’s Historic Home
Since 1933, the property has been owned by the State of New Jersey. Several plans over the years to expand and beautify the property have fallen through, mostly due to lack of funding. When the Edison Memorial Tower Corporation, a non-profit organization, became involved with the property in 1999, the tower was in a neglected state and the gatehouse was almost completely abandoned. Since then, the group has assisted the Township in its efforts to rejuvenate the property by bringing back the memory of Edison and his work.
"Across Metlars Lane is the 972-acre Livingston Campus, home to 2,145 undergraduate students and the Rutgers Athletic Center, where the university basketball teams play. ... About one-third of the Livingston campus is in Edison and Highland Park." U.S. Sen. Cory Booker cruises past Republican challenger Rik Mehta in New Jersey, PhillyVoice. "He now owns a home and lives in Newark's Central Ward community."
East Orange New Jersey Central Avenue with Trolley & Tracks c1910 NJ Postcard
Glenmont is an imposing structure whose extreme dimensions measure approximately 125 feet long, 116 feet wide, and 54 feet high. It originally contained 23 rooms, including 2 ½ bathrooms. A magnificent semicircular conservatory graces the south side of the home. The construction of Glenmont includes over 157,000 bricks, and in excess of 10,000 pounds of iron and steel framing. There are 23 fireplaces exiting through 7 chimneys. A total of 94 exterior windows grace the building, 41 of them adorned with canvas awnings.
In the summer of 1882 he began setting up a large generator plant at Pearl Street in downtown New York City. He fitted all the office buildings and homes on Pearl Street with about four hundred of his incandescent bulbs. On September 4, 1882, hundreds of people gathered on Pearl Street to witness a never before seen spectacle; at 3 p.m.
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West Orange and Edison Township are not the only places in New Jersey where Edison worked. Before moving to Menlo Park, his first facility was located at 15 New Jersey Railroad Avenue in Newark, followed by 4-6 and Ward Street, a block that no longer exists. Known as the “Wizard of Menlo Park,” he developed a massive complex in what was then known as Raritan Township.
The tower was built at the location of the laboratory with a large replica of the Edison’s original light bulb at the very top, lit for the first time on October 21, 1929. A frosted bulb called the “Eternal Light” was installed at the base of the tower. After Edison’s death in 1931, his family donated the property to the State of New Jersey to be converted into a state park. Meanwhile, plans for building a new, permanent tower were developed.
Parks
Thomas Edison State University moved to Trenton in 1979 and established its headquarters in the Kelsey Building, built in 1911 and one of the architectural landmarks of the city. Since that time, the University has been active in restoring several historic buildings of downtown Trenton, preserving the essence of the city’s legendary past and stimulating economic development. The Edison estate has a number of outbuildings on the property including a gardener house and a greenhouse, and there is a parking area next to them.
Situated in Central New Jersey within the core of the state's Raritan Valley region, Edison is a commercial hub, home to Menlo Park Mall and Little India. It is a bedroom community of New York City within the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, Edison had a total population of 107,588, making it the sixth-most populous municipality in New Jersey after ranking fifth in 2010. Thomas Edison State University’s campus comprises seven buildings located in the historic district surrounding New Jersey’s state capitol building in Trenton. Though Thomas Edison died in 1931, Mina lived until 1947. She deeded the house to Thomas Alva Edison, Inc. in 1943, which was then run by the Edison’s son Charles, with the understanding that the house would become a memorial to Edison after her death.
The township got its original name from the Raritan indigenous people. Portions of the township were taken to form Metuchen on March 20, 1900, and Highland Park on March 15, 1905. The name was officially changed to Edison Township on November 10, 1954, in honor of inventor Thomas Edison, who had his main laboratory in the Menlo Park section of the township.
Just up the hill from the complex in the Llewellyn Park gated community, visitors can take a guided tour of Glenmont, Thomas Edison’s house, which is open on select days per month while the structure is being renovated. Edison’s own vehicles can be viewed in the garage on the property, and he, along with his wife Mina, are buried behind the estate. Edison's Queen Anne style home was designed by Henry Hudson Holly and built between 1880 and 1882 for Henry Pedder. The mansion was built with gravity-convection central heat, indoor flush toilets, and hot and cold piped water.
"Clary" Azcona-Barber ,Charles Kenny ,Leslie Koppel ,Chanelle Scott McCullum and Charles E. Tomaro .Constitutional officers are County Clerk Nancy Pinkin ,Sheriff Mildred S. Scott and Surrogate Claribel Cortes (D, 2026; North Brunswick). Former Edison Democratic Chair and Detective Keith Hahn ran for mayor as a Republican against incumbent Mayor Thomas Lankey. Lankey was re-elected with 12,032 votes to Hahn's 8,574 votes. Edison State Park and Dismal Swamp are also located in the township. 22.7% of the population were under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 27.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older.
The township is one of 71 municipalities statewide governed under this form. Edison's governing body is comprised of the Mayor and the seven-member Township Council. Replica of Edison's lab where he invented the first commercially practical light bulb. Henry Ford, Edison's longtime friend, built it at the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan. Edison is a township located in Middlesex County,in the U.S. state of New Jersey.
