Changes

He met and married Mary Stilwell,<ref>They were married on Christmas Day, 1871, when Mary was sixteen. [http://www.sparknotes.com/biography/edison/terms/char_6.html (Spark Notes)]</ref>

He met and married Mary Stilwell,<ref>They were married on Christmas Day, 1871, when Mary was sixteen. [http://www.sparknotes.com/biography/edison/terms/char_6.html (Spark Notes)]</ref>

and they had three children, Marion Estelle, Thomas Alva Jr, and William. (Later after Mary's death in 1884, he remarried. He wed his 2nd wife Mina Miller in 1886, they had 3 children, Madelene, Charles and Theodore, and remained together until his death).

and they had three children, Marion Estelle, Thomas Alva Jr, and William. (Later after Mary's death in 1884, he remarried. He wed his 2nd wife Mina Miller<ref>He proposed to her by tapping "Will You Marry Me", in Morse Code, into her hand; she accepted contingent on her father's approval -- Edison was 20 years her senior -- which he granted.</ref> in 1886, they had 3 children, Madelene, Charles and Theodore, and remained together until his death).

His first daughter was nicknamed "Dot", and his first son "Dash" (see [[Morse Code]]).<ref>[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/edhtml/edtime.html Edison: Timeline for Inventing Entertainment], Library of Congress</ref>

His first daughter was nicknamed "Dot", and his first son "Dash" (see [[Morse Code]]).<ref>[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/edhtml/edtime.html Edison: Timeline for Inventing Entertainment], Library of Congress</ref>

===Menlo Park===

===Menlo Park===

[[File:Edison Phonograph 1877.jpg|thumb|President Harding speaking into recording apparatus, 1922.]]

[[File:Edison Phonograph 1877.jpg|thumb|President Harding speaking into recording apparatus, 1922.]]

In 1876 Edison left his Newark lab and established a laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey, where he earned the nickname ''"The Wizard of Menlo Park"''. The following year, in 1877, he invented the first [[phonograph]]. The tin foil phonograph was the first machine that could record and reproduce sound. This invention brought him worldwide recognition and acclaim and he was invited to meet U.S. President [[Rutherford B. Hayes]] in the [[White House]].

In 1876 Edison left his Newark lab and established a laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey, where he earned the nickname ''"The Wizard of Menlo Park"''. The following year, in 1877, he invented the first [[phonograph]]. The tin foil phonograph was the first machine that could record and reproduce sound. This invention brought him worldwide recognition and acclaim and he was invited to meet U.S. President [[Rutherford B. Hayes]] in the [[White House]].  In the winter, he vacationed (and operated a lab) in [[Fort Myers, Florida]] (industrialist [[Henry Ford]], who considered Edison his mentor, would purchase a house next to him in Fort Myers; the two houses are now owned by the city as a tourist attraction).

In 1879, Edison developed the first working incandescent electric light bulb. The original idea for the light bulb had already been proposed, and different versions attempted, but no one had yet been able to develop an electric lighting system that was practical and economical enough for common use.

In 1879, Edison developed the first working incandescent electric light bulb. The original idea for the light bulb had already been proposed, and different versions attempted, but no one had yet been able to develop an electric lighting system that was practical and economical enough for common use.