Summary
Thomas Alva Edison was born on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio.
He was the youngest of seven children, only four of whom would
live to adulthood. His father, Samuel Edison, Jr. was principally
a tavern owner and land speculator. His mother Nancy had been a
schoolteacher. Samuel Edison had trouble providing for his large
family and dabbled in many ventures, most of them unsuccessful.
The family moved to the larger town of Port Huron in 1854, where
the railroad had brought new opportunities.
Edison was a sickly child. Perhaps because of this, his
mother doted on him. He was curious even from a young age. Once,
he asked his mother why geese sit on their eggs. She explained
that it was so they would hatch, and when Thomas went missing that
day, she found him sitting patiently on a batch of geese eggs in
a neighbor's barn.
Because of his sicknesses, the family's financial situation,
and its relocation, Edison did not start school until he was about
eight years old. He first attended the private school of Reverend
G.B. Engle. Unfortunately, he was a restless pupil and did not
perform well. He disliked the rote teaching methods and the lack
of flexibility. When the teachers claimed that he was a slow child,
his mother took him out of school and began teaching him herself
at home.
From his mother, Edison learned basic reading, writing
and arithmetic. His father introduced him to his own favorite philosopher,
Thomas Paine. Reading became a passion, and Edison read extensively,
especially popular science periodicals and novels. Later on, as
an adult, he would take this same approach in doing research for
his inventions, sometimes spending days in the library. He read voraciously
and did not hesitate to study texts from all fields of learning.
Though Edison drifted in and out of formal school environments,
he was largely taught by his mother and himself. At the age of
twelve his schooling ended when he took a job as a "candy butcher"
on the Grand Trunk Railroad, selling newspapers, magazine, and
snacks to passengers. The railroad job granted him access to new
cities like Detroit and allowed him to showcase his budding entrepreneurial
skills. He set up a printing press and a chemistry lab in the baggage
car. On days when important battles of the Civil
War broke out, he made a great deal of money by baiting
the crowds with snippets of information about the battle that he
had arranged to be telegraphed ahead of time, then selling his
papers at inflated prices.
Analysis
Edison came from a family of political activists: his
great-grandfather, John, fought for the British during the Revolutionary
War and was nearly executed for treason. His own father, Samuel
Jr., helped to lead an uprising in Ontario for representative government
and was forced to flee for the United States. Historians speculate
that it may be these roots that helped Edison develop his own somewhat maverick
approach to inventing and marketing.
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