This folder contains correspondence and other documents relating to Edison's past work in the electrical industry, as well as inquiries and suggestions about electric lighting. Among the documents for 1919 are inquiries regarding the value of stock in the defunct Edison Electric Light Co. of Europe, Ltd. Also included are letters concerning Edison's shares in the Edison & Swan United Electric Light Co., Ltd.; the fortieth anniversary of the invention of the incandescent lamp; and the controversy between Edison and Frank J. Sprague over the proper attribution of credit for the development of electric traction. In addition, there are letters about the purported involvement of Edison and industrialist Henry Ford in a hydroelectric project. The correspondents include longtime Edison associates and electric company executives Samuel Insull, George F. Morrison, and Arthur O. Williams; former employee Joe F. Atkins; journalist Harriet W. Corley; and consulting engineer Horace F. Parshall.
Approximately 50 percent of the documents have been selected. The unselected items consist primarily of inquiries, ideas, and requests about lamps, power transmission, and electrical problems, which received routine replies stating that Edison was no longer in this business and sometimes referring the writer to General Electric. Also unselected are informational inquiries about historical events and individuals, which were handled by personal assistant William H. Meadowcroft. Courtesy of Thomas Edison National Historical Park.