Original site of Edison's 1886 Laboratory

In his initial plans for the property, Edison included a laboratory for his Florida estate. Through he anticipated leisure time, he also needed a place to pursue inventing. Of the many experiments he worked on in this laboratory, one focused on a form of underwater telegraphy. Edison said that he would be:

"...working upon sound, trying to extend the distance at which telegraphing by sound through water can be successfully accomplished. I have a regular workshop and a laboratory... and I go down there with a half dozen assistants. I am using steam explosions in such rapid succession as to form a musical note... long and short pauses (like dots and dashes of Morse code alphabet)—can signal three or four miles... I find the Florida waters best fitted for my experiments on account of their freedom from other sounds."

Source: New York Home Journal, February 9, 1904

The 1886 laboratory contained equipment for mechanical and chemical experiments. Compared to the $12,000 that was spent building and furnishing each of the homes, $16,000 was spent on the laboratory. Many of the elements inside the laboratory came from Edison's various companies, including the dynamo, which was powered by a coal-fired steam boiler and provided electricity for the estate in 1887—eleven years earlier than the City of Fort Myers, which was not electrified until 1898.

The original 1886 laboratory was sold to Henry Ford, and in 1928 was moved to his collection of historic buildings at Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan. Once there the laboratory became the base of operations for the Edison Institute, a project to study and retain Edison's inventions which remains open to visitors today. On the original footprint of the 1886 laboratory. Ford financed construction of Edison's Study and Mina Edison's Moonlight Garden.

(sidebar)
Did you know? According to a February 1886 New York Times article, one of the ships carrying supplies for the laboratory was hit by lighting and sunk. The cargo was insured for over $3,000 and contained "chemicals, machinery and furniture."

Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.

Show me all markers in:  Fort Myers, FL  |  Lee County  |  33901  |  Florida  |  United States of America

Henry Ford
Henry Ford's Florida Estate
Inside the Ford Home
Edison's "Florida Paradise"
Clara Ford's Michigan Rose Garden
Orchid Lane and Friendship Walk
Edison Estate Restoration and Rebirth
Edison Caretaker's House
Edison Caretaker's Yard
The Moonlight Garden

• GPX
• KML
• LOC

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.