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- Edison Diamond Disc Record, "Varsovienne" and "Heel and Toe Polka," 1926 - During the 1920s -- the "Jazz Age" -- Henry Ford led a nationwide revival of rural fiddling and old-fashioned dancing. Ford's "Old Time Orchestra" played at dances Ford hosted, while a dance instructor called the steps. After the orchestra performed at the New York Automobile Show in 1926, Edison recorded them at his New Jersey laboratory and included several selections in his record catalog for sale to the public.
- 1926-1929
- Collections - Artifact
Edison Diamond Disc Record, "Varsovienne" and "Heel and Toe Polka," 1926
During the 1920s -- the "Jazz Age" -- Henry Ford led a nationwide revival of rural fiddling and old-fashioned dancing. Ford's "Old Time Orchestra" played at dances Ford hosted, while a dance instructor called the steps. After the orchestra performed at the New York Automobile Show in 1926, Edison recorded them at his New Jersey laboratory and included several selections in his record catalog for sale to the public.
- Edison Diamond Disc Record, "Gasoline Gus and His Jitney Bus" / "Aunt Dinah's Golden Wedding," 1915 - Jitneys were illegal taxis or buses that were not licensed to carry paying passengers. This humorous account of a Jitney driver was performed by Billy Murray, a popular recording artist in the early 20th century. About 1920, the Victor Company stated that, through his recordings, Murray's was likely the most familiar voice in the world!
- June 21, 1915
- Collections - Artifact
Edison Diamond Disc Record, "Gasoline Gus and His Jitney Bus" / "Aunt Dinah's Golden Wedding," 1915
Jitneys were illegal taxis or buses that were not licensed to carry paying passengers. This humorous account of a Jitney driver was performed by Billy Murray, a popular recording artist in the early 20th century. About 1920, the Victor Company stated that, through his recordings, Murray's was likely the most familiar voice in the world!
- Ediphone, 1917-1925 - Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices used for efficient oral dictation in business settings. When Edison invented the phonograph, one proposed use was "dictation without the aid of stenographers." Its tinfoil playback medium lacked quality, however. Alexander Graham Bell's Graphophone (later, Dictaphone) improved the phonograph by using wax cylinders for superior playback; cylinders were also used in the competing Ediphone.
- 1917-1925
- Collections - Artifact
Ediphone, 1917-1925
Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices used for efficient oral dictation in business settings. When Edison invented the phonograph, one proposed use was "dictation without the aid of stenographers." Its tinfoil playback medium lacked quality, however. Alexander Graham Bell's Graphophone (later, Dictaphone) improved the phonograph by using wax cylinders for superior playback; cylinders were also used in the competing Ediphone.
- Cylinder Shaving Machine, circa 1907 - Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices largely used for oral dictation in business settings. In this scenario, wax cylinder recordings were passed to a secretary, who listened to the recording with a playback-only transcriber and then typed up notes. A shaving machine, such as this one, scraped the previously inscribed layer away allowing a wax cylinder to be reused over 100 times.
- circa 1907
- Collections - Artifact
Cylinder Shaving Machine, circa 1907
Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices largely used for oral dictation in business settings. In this scenario, wax cylinder recordings were passed to a secretary, who listened to the recording with a playback-only transcriber and then typed up notes. A shaving machine, such as this one, scraped the previously inscribed layer away allowing a wax cylinder to be reused over 100 times.
- Ediphone Voicewriter, 1930-1950 - Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices used for efficient oral dictation in business settings. When Edison invented the phonograph, one proposed use was "dictation without the aid of stenographers." Its tinfoil playback medium lacked quality, however. Alexander Graham Bell's Graphophone (later, Dictaphone) improved the phonograph by using wax cylinders for superior playback; cylinders were also used in the competing Ediphone.
- 1930-1950
- Collections - Artifact
Ediphone Voicewriter, 1930-1950
Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices used for efficient oral dictation in business settings. When Edison invented the phonograph, one proposed use was "dictation without the aid of stenographers." Its tinfoil playback medium lacked quality, however. Alexander Graham Bell's Graphophone (later, Dictaphone) improved the phonograph by using wax cylinders for superior playback; cylinders were also used in the competing Ediphone.
- Edisonic Voicewriter Headphones, Model 3, circa 1960 -
- circa 1960
- Collections - Artifact
Edisonic Voicewriter Headphones, Model 3, circa 1960
- Edison Class M Phonograph Motor, circa 1890 -
- circa 1890
- Collections - Artifact
Edison Class M Phonograph Motor, circa 1890
- Edison Experimental Cylinder Phonograph, 1909 -
- 1909
- Collections - Artifact
Edison Experimental Cylinder Phonograph, 1909
- Ediphone, Model E, 1913-1915 - Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices used for efficient oral dictation in business settings. When Edison invented the phonograph, one proposed use was "dictation without the aid of stenographers." Its tinfoil playback medium lacked quality, however. Alexander Graham Bell's Graphophone (later, Dictaphone) improved the phonograph by using wax cylinders for superior playback; cylinders were also used in the competing Ediphone.
- 1913-1915
- Collections - Artifact
Ediphone, Model E, 1913-1915
Dictaphones and Ediphones were sound recording devices used for efficient oral dictation in business settings. When Edison invented the phonograph, one proposed use was "dictation without the aid of stenographers." Its tinfoil playback medium lacked quality, however. Alexander Graham Bell's Graphophone (later, Dictaphone) improved the phonograph by using wax cylinders for superior playback; cylinders were also used in the competing Ediphone.
- Edison Type S Primary Battery, 1916-1929 - A chemical reaction hidden within this battery's white porcelain jar creates electricity. Thomas Edison developed this battery from an earlier design by Felix Lalande and Georges Chaperon. Batteries like this Type S powered fans, phonographs, telephones, and a variety of other devices for years in places where the electric grid did not reach, or electric generators were impractical.
- 1916-1929
- Collections - Artifact
Edison Type S Primary Battery, 1916-1929
A chemical reaction hidden within this battery's white porcelain jar creates electricity. Thomas Edison developed this battery from an earlier design by Felix Lalande and Georges Chaperon. Batteries like this Type S powered fans, phonographs, telephones, and a variety of other devices for years in places where the electric grid did not reach, or electric generators were impractical.