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ALS signed “T. A. Edison,” one page, 5.5 x 8.25, From the Laboratory of Thomas A. Edison letterhead, November 16, 1887. Handwritten letter to "Friend Beggs," presumably John I. Beggs, a vice president and general manager of the Edison General Electric Illuminating Company. In full: "The bearer Mr. Kirkgard goes to Denmark to start Electric Lighting. He would like to see the Central Station at N.Y. & would like a letter from you to your Harrisburg friends as he wants to see the latest Central Station. Please accommodate him." In fine condition, with a few small stains, one touching a single word of text.
This brief but revealing letter places Thomas A. Edison squarely at the center of the global expansion of electric power. By this date, Edison’s direct-current lighting system had already transformed urban life in the United States, and central generating stations—such as his pioneering Pearl Street Station in New York—served as models for electrification projects worldwide. Edison’s recommendation of Mr. Kirkgard, who was traveling to Denmark “to start Electric Lighting,” demonstrates the international reach of his influence and the active export of American electrical expertise to Europe.
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