Thomas Edison

Thomas Alva Edison was an inventor who created many important things that changed the way Americans live today. He was born on February 11, 1847 in Mt. Clemens, Michigan. He had trouble hearing because of an uncared for middle ear infection, and he had difficulty paying attention in school. As a result, he was pulled out of school where he was mother was then forced to home school him. At a young age, Thomas Edison created a small business where he would sell newspapers on the train, and eventually recruited some of his friends to work for him.
The most important event that influenced Thomas Edison as a teenager was when he was taught how to use a telegraph machine. One day he had saved the life of a boy from being hit by a train. In turned out that this boy was the son of the chief of the train station, and as a reward the train station chief agreed to teach Edison how to use the telegraph machine. Based on his experience with the telegraph machine, Thomas Edison later created the double telegraph. The double telegraph could send two messages and receive two messages at the same time. Edison was eventually successful and sold this invention to a man named Mr. Goulden for thirty thousand dollars, which is equivalent to around five hundred thousand dollars today. With this money he was able to buy a big house in Menlo Park, New Jersey with a separate laboratory. In this laboratory Edison and his partner made most of his great inventions. As Thomas Edison got older he became well known for many of his inventions. The invention that really made him famous was the phonograph. The phonograph was a device that allowed people to record and play music. The public was amazed because they never even thought someone could record their own voice and play it over and over again. Edison was invited to Washington D.C to show his invention to congressmen, senators and the US president, Hayes. He became known as “The Wizard of Menlo Park.” One of Thomas Edison’s greatest