New Jersey: Thomas Edison

I just realized I never actually wrote a post about our trip to Thomas Edison’s Laboratory complex in West Orange, NJ.    We went there as part of our US States study, specifically New Jersey, our home state. 

We started out by reading about Thomas Edison in a few books.  All of our general New Jersey books had a section on Thomas Edison, and we read Thomas Edison: Inventor with a Lot of Bright Ideas.

Our visit to the laboratory complex was fun, but I think the kids will appreciate it more in a few years.    We did get to hear an early phonograph, and take a quick guided tour of the Chemistry lab. 

There was an I Spy checklist the kids used to find things, which helped keep their interest for a little while.

The time clock where Edison and his employees punched in every day.

Thomas Edison’s desk in the library.

The machine shop..

The old elevator…

the photo department with the early fire extinguisher..

the music room….

 

Looking at all that glass, I can understand why the Ranger made our tour of the Chemistry lab a quick one.

The Black Maria, the first film studio.  It was built on a track so the whole building could rotate and utilize the sunlight.

After our visit, we came home and explored the website for the park.   The kids were most interested in the games but it was also a good review of our visit.