science · 04 September 1882 · 142 years ago
In 1882, the first central electric station to supply light and power was the Edison Electric Illuminating Company at 257 Pearl Street in New York City. Thomas Edison inaugurated its operation by operating a switch in the Wall Street office of his primary financial backer. The station's “Jumbo No.1” generator was a direct-current steam-powered dynamo. The armature alone was 6 tons of its total 27 ton weight, and used air cooling. It was built at the Edison Machine Works in 1881, and had its first test on 5 Jul 1882. It could power about 700 sixteen candlepower lamps. Within 14 months, Edison's first power station served 508 subscribers and powered 12,732 bulbs.
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