Thomas Edison was born on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio. Thomas Edison did not have an easy childhood during the 1850s. For example, when Edison was six years old, he was responsible for starting a fire that ruined the family barn. Edison's father publicly beat his son as a sign of humiliation and pain. After the accident, Edison moved to Port Huron, Michigan when he was seven years old. Then he fell ill and had to interrupt his studies for a year. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Edison's teacher thought he was a terrible student who had no interest in learning. His mother had different feelings and began to teach Edison herself at home. His mother taught him to read, write and arithmetic, but he was always trying to learn more. At the age of twelve, Edison began working selling newspapers and candy on the local railroad that ran from Port Huron to Detroit. While Edison was working for the railroads, he saved a 3-year-old boy from being hit by an errant train, and the child's father was very grateful and rewarded him by teaching him how to use a telegraph. At sixteen, Edison was able to work as a full-time telegrapher and quit his current job. He earned $40,000 for his work on the telegraph and opened a research laboratory in Menlo, New Jersey, where he and a group of scientists developed the carbon-fired telephone transmitter to greatly improve Alexander Bell's work. He worked at the Gold Indicator Company and the owner provided him with a place to sleep in the basement since he had no money for shelter. In 1876, Edison created the world's first "invention factory" and his laboratory which was described as a large barn-like building and would work on creating new, life-changing inventions throughout history. In his laboratory he created the first gramophone and the first light bulb. Thomas Edison did not create the first electric light, although he did create the first practical light bulb for indoor use. During the late 1870s, arc lights had already been created for streets, but these lights were too bright for indoor homes. In October 1878, he filed his first patent that year called "Improvement of Electric Lights". Edison faced many obstacles when creating the first light bulb. This is because the light bulb had many high requirements and faced many competitors who had the same idea. It took him many failures to create his success, he didn't fail ten thousand times, he found ten thousand ways it didn't work until it finally worked. Thomas Edison's light bulb is still a huge success today and his invention led to hundreds of different light bulb and electrical companies. He has an estimated net worth of over $12 million as of 2013. Thomas Edison was granted 1,093 US patents, and that is a record that still stands today. His greatest achievement, the light bulb, changed the world and continues to have a major influence on electricity companies. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Edison's brilliant indoor light bulb brought him great triumph, leading him to receive enormous amounts of wealth and fame. When electricity began to rapidly spread throughout the world, Edison had many different electric companies and these companies grew until 1889. For example, today in New York, there are more than 100 different electric companies that were influenced by the founding of Thomas.