Description:

Thomas Edison
[Orange, NJ], October 13, 1919
Thomas Edison's Secretary William H. Meadowcroft TLS: "He [Edison] is just getting back to work on the phonograph again, and he says he is going to finish it this time for good"
TLS

A 1p typed letter signed by William Henry Meadowcroft (1853-1937), the personal secretary of American inventor Thomas A. Edison between 1910 and Edison's death in 1931, as "Wm H Meadowcroft" at lower right. October 13, 1919. [Orange, New Jersey.] With "From the Laboratory / of / Thomas A. Edison, / Orange, N.J." letterhead, and typed on "Trademark / Thomas A. Edison" watermarked paper. Pencil-inscribed "Important" along the left margin. Expected wear including flattened folds and scattered minor chips. Uneven toning and isolated surface abrasions. Else very good. 8.375" x 11."

Meadowcroft wrote this letter to Rear Admiral George Eli Burd (1857-1924), in part:

"Mr. Edison received your letter of October 9, and has read it with a great deal of interest and pleasure… He is just getting back to work on the phonograph again, and he says he is going to finish it this time for good…"

Edison had debuted the phonograph in 1877 and received a patent for the invention in 1878. Over the next 40 years, Edison would make constant changes to the phonograph, both in response to market forces, as well as in response to discoveries he continued to make in relevant side areas. The phonograph underwent significant changes to the cylinder/record, needle, and its case size, appearance, and portability. Despite his assurances to Admiral Burd, Edison failed to keep his word: he was still tinkering with the phonograph in the mid-1920s! But then, even Edison's most successful iteration of the phonograph, the Diamond Disc, could not compete with the latest technology, the radio.

Thomas A. Edison (1847-1931) was America's most prolific, and arguably its most important, inventor. His 1,093 patents span the fields of electricity, printing, telecommunications, and motion picture and sound recordings, as well as a myriad of other technologies. Edison's Orange laboratory, which opened in 1887, would expand over the next few decades into a substantial industrial, chemical, mechanical, and electrical research and development complex. Edison's legacy consists of his two laboratories in Menlo Park and Orange, New Jersey and in 300+ international companies that capitalized on his inventions.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 8.375" x 11"
  • Medium: TLS

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