Bergmann & Company Edison Chemical Meter, circa 1882
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To make money selling electricity, Thomas Edison had to know how much his customers used. This meter used electricity to plate zinc onto electrodes. By weighing the electrodes to see how much zinc had accumulated, Edison's company could calculate how much electricity was being used. This is one of the earliest surviving electrical meters. It was part of Edison's pioneering September 1882 Pearl street system.
To make money selling electricity, Thomas Edison had to know how much his customers used. This meter used electricity to plate zinc onto electrodes. By weighing the electrodes to see how much zinc had accumulated, Edison's company could calculate how much electricity was being used. This is one of the earliest surviving electrical meters. It was part of Edison's pioneering September 1882 Pearl street system.
Artifact
Meter (Measuring device)
Date Made
circa 1882
Creators
Place of Creation
United States, New York, Batavia
Creator Notes
Possibly made by Bergmann & Company.
Location
Not on exhibit to the public.
Object ID
29.1980.275
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of the Edison Pioneers.
Material
Metal
Copper (Metal)
Glass (Material)
Inscriptions
top of unit: EDISON-PATENTS / 707
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