We crossed the Delaware Memorial Bridge into New Jersey and travelled through the parts of the state that do not bring to mind the descriptive “Garden State”.
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Two hours of driving brought us to the Edison National Historic Park in E. Orange, New Jersey. This particular site has been on several of our return trip itineraries over the years but its location just 4 hours from home meant that we bypassed it in favor of sleeping in our own beds that night. We specifically planned our schedule this time to allow for a visit here and a to still be home at a decent hour.
This site was the last and largest of his laboratories. It was here that he perfected his phonograph, motion pictures, the nickel-iron alkaline storage battery and enough other inventions to boggle the mind. His home Glenmont is located just down the street. We will return and visit this site on another trip.
Edison’s first laboratory was at Menlo Park was too small for the growing number of Edison Enterprises. Building began here at this site in 1887. There are 14 buildings in the complex although the visitor only tours one building and the visitor’s center. The Edison archival collections are among the largest of the National Park Service.
Just as his friend Henry Ford revolutionized the process of assembling automobiles Thomas Edison invented a process for invention. This was in essence the first research and development laboratory. Once an idea came to light you could go to the library to do research and check for previous patents, then requisition the materials you needed from the massive stock room or have them fabricated in the machine shops, teams of chemists, and engineers could help refine the design and perform tests. In one building the idea became the product, which then could be manufactured in other buildings nearby.
Thankfully much of this building and its contents are much as they were when Edison died in 1931. It is very evocative of the man and his time.
This site was the last and largest of his laboratories. It was here that he perfected his phonograph, motion pictures, the nickel-iron alkaline storage battery and enough other inventions to boggle the mind. His home Glenmont is located just down the street. We will return and visit this site on another trip.
Edison’s first laboratory was at Menlo Park was too small for the growing number of Edison Enterprises. Building began here at this site in 1887. There are 14 buildings in the complex although the visitor only tours one building and the visitor’s center. The Edison archival collections are among the largest of the National Park Service.
Just as his friend Henry Ford revolutionized the process of assembling automobiles Thomas Edison invented a process for invention. This was in essence the first research and development laboratory. Once an idea came to light you could go to the library to do research and check for previous patents, then requisition the materials you needed from the massive stock room or have them fabricated in the machine shops, teams of chemists, and engineers could help refine the design and perform tests. In one building the idea became the product, which then could be manufactured in other buildings nearby.
Thankfully much of this building and its contents are much as they were when Edison died in 1931. It is very evocative of the man and his time.
It was an easy 4-hour drive back to Lexington and we did cross the Massachusetts border before the sunset.
That's 82,762 at the end minus We started with 75,718 miles on the odometer and ended with 82,762 miles. We left at 8:13am on January 4th 2016 when it was 29º and arrived back home at 7:28pm, March 2, 2016 when it was 3º warmer for a total of 59 days and 7,044 miles driven.