This folder contains correspondence and other documents relating to the commercial development of Edison's phonograph in France, Germany, Russia, and Latin America. Some of the letters pertain to the presentation of a phonograph to the German Imperial Postal Museum and the demonstration of the phonograph to Czar Alexander III, Peter Tchaikovsky, and Anton Rubinstein. Many of the letters are by Julius H. Block, Edison's phonograph agent in Russia. Also included are two letters, written by Block in 1922, enclosing phonograph testimonials made in 1889.
Approximately 60 percent of the documents have been selected. The following categories of documents have not been selected: routine requests for information; routine inquiries about foreign sales agencies; letters of transmittal; other routine business correspondence; duplicate copies of selected documents. Courtesy of Thomas Edison National Historical Park.