Edison: Genius. Showman. Executioner.Episode 151:15
The Enemy Edison Could Not See
During World War I, the aging inventor takes his experimental method onto the water in search of submarines.
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Transcript
During World War I, Edison spent several months experimenting with submarine-detection techniques on Long Island Sound.
In 1915, Edison was appointed to head the Naval Consulting Board.
Edison was born in 1847, long before his wartime research began.
He was trying to detect a submarine before it reached the surface. The challenge was separating a submerged target from waves, wind, and boat noise.
At West Orange, Edison could work on as many as 10 or 20 projects at once.
On the boat, crude instruments turned water movement into signals he could study.
A listening device monitored the water while Edison watched its needle for movement.
But waves and engine noise could mask the faint signal he needed.
The search continued in darkness and silence around them.
The Thomas Edison Papers include wartime research reports covering 1917-1919.
Edison said, “I never quit until I get what I'm after.”
The West Orange complex employed 10,000 people at its peak during World War One.
Where it leaves off
Edison returned from the submarine search as more than an inventor—the nation was beginning to turn him into a living symbol.
Sources
- Edison Biography - Thomas Edison National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service)nps.govsecondary
- Life of Thomas Alva Edisonloc.govsecondary
- Thomas Edison and World War I: Collections in the Thomas A. Edison Papersedison.rutgers.edusecondary
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