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First Commercial Coal Production in US Begins in Richmond, Virginia
Coal was found in Virginia by settlers in 1701. Coal miners used to most likely be farmers who dug the coal by the surface and sold it an a bushel. The first commercial production began in 1748 -
The first natural gas well was drilled in the US
The well was dug in Fredonia, New York when William Hart saw gas bubbles rising in a creek, he dug a 27 foot well to get better gas flow. He is regarded as the "father of natural gas" -
Coal Becomes Primary Locomotive Fuel in US, Replacing Wood
The first use of coal occurred when Tom Thumb created the first commercially partially american locomotive that ran on coal. This converted all trains that used wood to using coal -
Ethanol Blend Becomes Popular Lamp Fuel in US
Ethanol blend as lamp fuel replaces whale oil. Pennsylvania discovered the leading fuel in the 1830s. It was a blend of high proof ethyl alcohol and 20-50 percent turpentine. in 1834 the first patent for alcohol as a lamp fuel was awarded. -
Windmill Becomes Popular Water Pumping Tool of Western Homesteaders and Railroad Builders
Wind as the force behind western settlement was life-changing given they assisted early settlers and are still used today -
John D. Rockefeller Forms Standard Oil and Develops Petroleum as a Major Energy Source in the US
in 1870 John D. Rockefeller forms the Standard Oil Co. attempting and succeeding in gaining control of the industry. He first lowered the prices of his oil and purposely lost money for the first three years then bought out his competitors, in a decade Rockefeller goes from owning 2% of the industry to 90% -
First Electric Plant Built by Thomas Edison in New York
T. Edison flipped a switch that would start up americas first power plant serving a square mile of New York's wealthiest and most influential customers. -
Hoover Dam, the World's Largest Hydroelectric Power Plant, Is Built
It took four years to build and at the time of its completion was the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world until 1948 -
First Controlled Nuclear Chain Reaction
As World War II started European and American physicists discovered that a uranium atom split by a neutron would create a self perpetuating chain reaction that released massive amounts of energy. -
First Nuclear Power Reactor to Generate Electricity Built in Idaho
For the first time a nuclear reactor produced useful electricity for the first time. Even though it was barely enough to power four 100 watt lightbulbs in series the 16 scientists and engineers celebrated their achievement and chalked their names into the wall next to the reactor
