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Benjamin Franklin's Kite Experiment
Ben Franklin tied a key to a kite string during a thunderstorm, and proved that static electricity and lightning were the same thing. The Kite Experiment -
Samuel Morey's Ethanol-Turpentine Engine
Samuel Morey developed an engine that ran on ethanol and turpentine. -
Colonel Drake hits gas and oil
Edwin Drake drilled the first commercial well and hit oil and natural gas at 69 feet below the earth's surface. A 2-inch diameter pipeline was built, running 5½ miles from the well to the village of Titusville, Pennsylvania. This milestone may be considered the beginning of the natural gas industry in America. -
Thomas Edison switches on his Pearl Street generating station
The first practical coal-fired electric generating station, developed by Thomas Edison, went into operation in New York City to supply electricity for household lights. -
Charles F. Brush uses the first large windmill for electricity!
Charles F. Brush used the first large windmill to generate electricity for his mansion on Euclid Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. Windmills that produce electricity started to be called wind turbines. -
Willamette Falls Station Opens
The nation's first alternating current (AC) hydroelectric plant, Willamette Falls Station, began operation in Oregon City, Oregon. -
A more efficient PV cell is created!
Inventors at Bell Labs (Daryl Chapin, Calvin Fuller, and Gerald Pearson) developed a more efficient PV cell (6% efficiency) made from silicon. This was the first solar cell capable of generating enough power from the sun to run everyday electrical equipment. -
Town in Idaho becomes the first lit by nuclear energy
Arco, Idaho, (population 1,000) became the first U.S. town powered by nuclear energy. The power was provided by an experimental reactor, BORAX III, at the Nuclear Reactor Testing Station (NRTS) which is now the Idaho National Laboratory. -
Oil well output peaks for the United States
Oil well productivity for the Nation reached a high of 18.6 barrels per day per well. -
California Energy takes over Magma Power
The article the day after.California Energy became the world’s largest geothermal company at the time through its acquisition of Magma Power.
