The Thomas Alva Edison Birthplace is a
historic house museum at 9 Edison Drive in
Milan, Ohio
Milan ( ) is a village in Erie and Huron counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 1,371 at the 2020 census. It is best known as the birthplace and childhood home of Thomas Edison.
The Erie County portion of Milan is part of th ...
, Built in 1841, it was the birthplace of
American inventor
An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea, or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...
Thomas Alva Edison
Thomas Alva Edison (February11, 1847October18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions ...
(1847–1931), born on February 11, 1847. It was designated a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...
in 1965, and was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1966. It is now the Thomas Edison Birthplace Museum.
Description and history
The Thomas Alva Edison Birthplace is in a formerly residential (now a museum complex) area north of downtown Milan, on the west side of North Edison Drive. It is a small -story brick building, with a gabled roof and two end chimneys. The main facade is five bays wide, with the entrance at the center, topped by a four-light transom window. The door and window openings are all headed by stone lintels. The downstairs interior includes two parlors, a sitting room, and kitchen. The sitting room, in which Edison was born, includes the bed in which his mother lay for the birth. The upstairs attic level includes two more bedrooms. The house is furnished with Edison family artifacts.
The house was built and designed by Samuel Edison in 1841, on land purchased by his wife, Nancy Elliott Edison. His son Thomas was born here in 1847, and it remained the family home until 1854, when they moved to
Port Huron, Michigan
Port Huron is a city in and seat of government of St. Clair County, Michigan, United States. The population was 28,983 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered on the west by Port Huron Township, but the two are administered autonomously.
Po ...
. The young Edison's early youth in Milan appears to have been unremarkable, the most notorious incident being his burning down a barn, described by one biographer as a "glorious experiment".
[ The house was sold in 1854, but was repurchased by Edison's sister in 1894. After Edison's death in 1931, his wife and daughter worked to transform the birthplace into a museum in his honor.]
See also
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Erie County, Ohio
* List of National Historic Landmarks in Ohio
References
External links
Edison Birthplace Museum website
National Historic Landmark listing
The History of Thomas Alva Edison
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edison, Thomas
National Register of Historic Places in Erie County, Ohio
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio
National Historic Landmarks in Ohio
Museums in Erie County, Ohio
Houses completed in 1841
Historic house museums in Ohio
Birthplace
Biographical museums in Ohio
Houses in Erie County, Ohio
Birthplaces of individual people