About Thomas Edison
Where the Age of Invention Was Born
Thomas Alva Edison, the brilliant inventor of the phonograph, the incandescent light bulb, and many other life-enhancing devices, was born in Milan, Ohio, in 1847. The Birthplace Museum proudly presents a unique collection of rare Edisonia, featuring several of Edison’s early inventions, documents, and cherished family keepsakes.
From February through December, The Birthplace warmly welcomes visitors at 9 North Edison Drive in Milan, Ohio, conveniently located near Exit 118 of the Ohio Turnpike. Come explore and discover the inspiring journey of this remarkable man who initiated the Age of Invention. Opened by his wife Mina and daughter Madeleine, The Edison Birthplace stands as a heartfelt tribute to the humble beginnings of an extraordinary man.
Our special connection as the only Edison site involving family members makes us truly unique. Great-grandchildren, along with a great-great-great-great niece, actively serve on our Board of Trustees, while a great-great-great nephew proudly presides as President.
The Edison Family
John Edison, the great-grandfather of the inventor, originally settled in New Jersey during the colonial era. He farmed a vast expanse of land near West Orange, New Jersey, in the 0s. (Thomas A. Edison later made his home in this area some 160 years afterward.) With the shifting politics of the times, family fortunes varied. John Edison, like many affluent landowners of the time, showed loyalty to the Loyalist cause during the Revolution. As a result, he faced imprisonment and, at one point, a death sentence. Still, the efforts of his prominent Whig relatives brought him reprieve from this grim fate.
Nonetheless, authorities confiscated his lands, leading the family to venture north to Scotia. The Edisons stayed in Nova Scotia until 1811 before relocating to Vienna, Ontario. Edison’s grandfather, Captain Samuel Edison sided with the British in the War of 1812. In Ontario, Edison’s father, Samuel, crossed paths with and married Nancy Elliott, a schoolteacher and daughter of a captain in Washington’s army, Ebenezer Matthews Elliott. The Samuel found himself entangled in another political conflict—the much later and unsuccessful Canadian counterpart the American Revolution, known as the Papineau-MacKenzie Rebellion.
The rebellion’s unsuccessful outcome put Samuel on the run, forcing him to cross the border into the United States. After surviving countless dangers and hardships, Samuel finally arrived in the town of Milan, Ohio, where he chose to build a life. Here in Milan, he made a name for himself manufacturing roof shingles and called for Nancy and their five children to join him.
The Town of Milan
When the Edison family came to join Samuel in Milan around 1840, the town was starting to experience a period of unprecedented prosperity. Situated at the fluence of the Huron River and a canal constructed to connect Milan to the Great Lakes, the town evolved into a bustling grain. Commodities from every corner of the state found their way to Milan in long wagon trains, loaded onto ships from warehouses that lined the canal banks. (One warehouse still stands by the deserted canal basin.)
In 1847, this port witnessed the shipment of ,800 bushels of wheat, securing its position as the second-largest wheat-shipping port for an inland sea globally, second only to the Ukrainian city of Odessa. Milan also transformed into a shipbuilding center, crafting 75 lake vessels between 1840 and 1866. However, by 1850, the emergence of railroads and subsequent changes in transportation modalities stifled the town’s booming prosperity.
Over time, people abandoned the canal and the shipyard, resulting in the disappearance of the warehouses. Milan’s “golden age,” which lasted for approximately ten years, came to a halt—although grain shipments persisted until 1865.
The Birthplace House
Nancy Elliott Edison, mother of Thomas Alva Edison, joyfully acquired the lot for this house in 1841. That fall, Nancy and Samuel Edison enthusiastically began building their home, following Samuel's creative design. Their son, Thomas Alva Edison, was born here on February 11, 1847. In 1854, the family embarked on
a new adventure, moving to Port Huron, Michigan.
For forty years, the Birthplace awaited its return to family care. In 1894, Marion Edison Page, Edison's sister, lovingly purchased the house and enhanced it with a bathroom and other modern comforts. By 1906, Edison proudly owned his birthplace. On his last visit in 1923, he was delighted to see his childhood home still glowing with lamps and candles! After Thomas A. Edison passed away on October 18, 1931, his wife, Mina Miller Edison, and their daughter, Mrs. John Eyre Sloane, dedicated themselves to transforming his birthplace into a cherished public memorial and museum.
The museum joyously welcomed the public on the inventor's birth centennial in 1947. Restoration efforts have beautifully preserved the house to closely reflect its 19th Century appearance. While some original Edison furniture wasn't retained due to relocations and a fire at their Port Huron home, the family’s generous gifts and loans have been wonderfully complemented by contributions from friends, along with acquisitions of period household articles. Today, the Edison Birthplace Association, Inc., a private, non-profit organization, proudly supervises this National Historic Site.