O.T. - Light after Pearl Street

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AudioAntique
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O.T. - Light after Pearl Street

Post by AudioAntique »

September 4, 1882 was a busy day for Thomas Edison as he brought the promise of electric illumination to the world when he turned on the lights at Pearl Street, New York. A steam driven generating plant provided the world's first use of commercially generated electricity to Edison's new invention: the incandescent lamp.

Yet just 26 days later on the evening of September 30, 1882 in the small Midwest town of Appleton, Wisconsin history was also made. Lights came on in the well-appointed Victorian home of Henry J. Rogers, and two nearby paper plants.

While Mr. Edison's plant used steam power to generate electricity for the light, Mr. Rogers small plant made use of water power from the Fox River to drive a 12.5 KW Type K Edison generator. This feature makes the H. J. Rogers house the first residential home in the world electrified by a centrally-located hydroelectric power plant using the Thomas A. Edison electric system. One month later, another Type K generator was placed into operation and by December of 1882, three more residences, a blast furnace and at least five more mills were glowing from the light of bamboo filaments in the Edison lamps. The world's first central hydroelectric station was providing electric service to more buildings than any other city in the country.

Today, the house Rogers house, known as Hearthstone Historic House Museum, is the only house museum to contain original 1882 working light switches, original wooden cleats with exposed wiring, an original wooden raceway for electrical distribution and original electroliers equipped for gas and electric lighting including Bergmann fixtures.

The house represents an era when a daring entrepreneur together with the genius of the world’s greatest inventor forever changed the way the world would perceive darkness. This Saturday, September 16, 2017 the Hearthstone Museum will be celebrating 135 years since the successful lighting of the Rogers House which took place on the evening of September 30, 1882. Yours truly will be reenacting the historic event as Mr. H. J. Rogers brings Edison’s incandescent lighting to Appleton. Visit: http://www.focol.org/hearthstone/

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Jerry B.
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Re: O.T. - Light after Pearl Street

Post by Jerry B. »

If I remember correctly, Mr. Rogers was president of the local gas company. If so, I wonder why he wanted electric lighting. Gas lighting was quite well received at the time.

Jerry B.

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AudioAntique
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Re: O.T. - Light after Pearl Street

Post by AudioAntique »

You are right Jerry, Rogers was president of the Appleton Gas Co. and more....
H. J. Rogers was an entrepreneur with a vision for the future. He made is fortune as an investor in local businesses. After investing in an Appleton paper mill, he came to Appleton as its manager and continued to enlarge the plant to a capacity of seven and one half tons of print paper per day. He also managed the Green Bay and Mississippi Canal Co., which leased water rights for about a 50-mile stretch of the Fox River. In the spring of 1882, he went fishing with a friend, H. E. Jacobs, who was just hired as a representative of the Western Edison Light Co. of Chicago. Jacobs sold Rogers a complete Edison system sight unseen! Of course, Rogers immediately saw an investment opportunity in forming his own company and in May of 1883, with other investors, incorporated the Appleton Edison Light Co. (now WE Energies). The 1882 agreement with Jacobs included "the exclusive rights for illuminating the towns of the Fox River Valley with the Edison electric lamp."

I will be portraying H.J. Rogers in the reenactment this Saturday as we again turn on the lights at Hearthstone, as they were lit 135 years ago.
http://www.audioantique.com - Books featuring: Hearthstone Historic House Museum, Nipper Collectibles, Nipper items, Phonograph Dolls & Toys; Items for sale.

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Skihawx
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Re: O.T. - Light after Pearl Street

Post by Skihawx »

I loved the gas lights I restored in the old house we owned outside Indianapolis. Must have had 25 or 30 gas jets through out the house. I especially liked the combination fixtures. The house was built in 1880 and wired in 1905.
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startgroove
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Re: O.T. - Light after Pearl Street

Post by startgroove »

I love photos like this. Nice display of a 10-70 Electrola and 8-9 Victrola. Russie

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