Joshua Zou / Entry number 35006

Annotated Bibliography

Primary Sources

Brown, Harold P. “Life and Death.” Received by Editor of the New York Tribune, Dec. 1888,

New York City, New York.

This letter is written from the point of view of an electrical engineer working for the

government to find a more efficient way to execute criminals. This electrical engineer was

subtly used by Edison and Edison's ambition, to become an outspoken advocate against

alternating current. This would lead to the Kemmler incident of a failed electric chair

execution.

"Edison and Tesla Rivals." National Press Intelligence [New York City] 22 May 1896: n.

pag. Rutgers. Web.

This was published as the feud between Edison and Tesla played out, and demonstrates

how the tension was tangible even to outside observers. It also has many examples of

Edison and Tesla attacking each other.

"Edison Challenges Tesla to Show His New Light." New York Gossip [New York] 23 May 1896:

n. pag. Rutgers Thomas Edison Papers. Web.

A newspaper article captures the core of the conflict, Edison and Tesla continually

challenging and threatening each other, pushing each other to greater successes and

failures in their conflicts.

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“Edison Has His Eye on Argon.” New York Sun, 15 Mar. 1895.

Published the same day as the laboratory fire article, this article mentions how Edison is

busy on several projects and thus cannot additionally take on Argon experimentation. It

demonstrates his ability to take on challenges without overextending his limit, a skill that

Tesla lacks, and a skill that he eventually loses.

“Edison's Laboratory Burnt.” New London Telegraph, 15 Mar. 1895.

The article writes how Edison and his men are ready to try again despite the fire,

demonstrating Edison's perseverance and ambition. This ambition would put him at odds

with Tesla.

Edison, Thomas A. “My Dear Tesla.” Received by Nikola Tesla, Rutgers, 13 Mar. 1887,

Rutgers.

A letter from Thomas Edison to Nikola Tesla, demonstrating their original compromise to

work as a team instead of against one another. This would be broken because of many

disagreements, such as their contrasting ambitions, which are temporarily focused on a

project to "beat Roentgen."

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Edison, Thomas A. “Notes on Distribution of Alternating Current.” Received by Edward

Hibberd Johnson, 1896.

This letter demonstrates how, even at the beginning of the battle for direct versus

alternating current, Edison tried to discredit alternating current. This can be seen in his

use of "even if ... then ... still happens," a common model for critique. This conflict would

grow to become a battle for recognition.

"Mr. Edison's Experiments with the X-Ray." Richmond Virginia State 30 May 1896: n.

pag. Rutgers. Web.

The article is about Edison's discoveries in the field of X-Ray technology. This

newspaper is published after Edison's current war, but before he and his assistant are

badly harmed by X-Rays. This demonstrates how the world as far away as Richmond still

had their eyes fixed on both geniuses, and would watch both eventually fall.

“More Wonders to Come.” General Phonograph, 7 Apr. 1895.

While the article may not be factual, it demonstrates the myths surrounding Edison due to

his rise to fame. It most notably refers to him attempting to hide his next developments.
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“Municipal Matters.” 15 Mar. 1895.

The article writes about how electric companies were in a battle with the government

over whether or not the companies should pay 5% of their earnings to the government. It

demonstrates how large the profit Edison stood to light a city, much less the entire

country, revealing the extremely high stake of a battle between Edison, Tesla, and another

actor, Westinghouse, for current production.

"New Use of X Rays: Discoveries Are Simultaneous." Chicago Tribune 27 May 1896: n.

pag. Rutgers. Web.

This article shows exactly how close the competition between Edison and Tesla was,

since they discovered the same form of light near simultaneously. This is an obvious

reason why there was so much conflict, as their geniuses were so closely aligned, yet so

characteristically different.

"Thomas A. Edison Papers." The Thomas A. Edison Papers at Rutgers University. Rutgers, 5

May 2017. Web.

A collection not only of Thomas Edison's personal writings, but also newspaper writings,

journals, court interviews, and other primary sources of what was occurring to the people

around him, such as Westinghouse, Tesla, and all three of the men's assistants, this gives

valuable insight into the developing rivalry, which had started as a cautious compromise,

between the two geniuses, especially through newspapers where they attempt to discredit

each other.
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“Tesla’s New Light.” Pittsburgh Press. 1892. n. pag. Rutgers Thomas Edison Papers. Web.

This was an extremely enlightening interview done by the Pittsburgh Press on Tesla,

which demonstrates how Tesla was thought of as a time as essentially a minor celebrity,

due to his eccentricity and his genius. This interview clarifies how people of the time

thought about the wizards of the Current war, as well as provides insight into the public

opinion of the war being waged behind closed doors.

"Unbound Clippings Series: Clippings (1892)." 1892: n. pag. Rutgers. Web.

These sources were assorted newspaper clippings of interviews with Tesla and Edison,

describing advertisements and plugs they made in their interviews. This source gives an

observer's perspective into the feud, as well as a view of how media elevated conflict. In

addition, the sources write about how before the feud, Edison and Tesla cooperated,

compromising their ambitions for a common goal.

“Will Underbid The Trust” Chicago Press. 5 Oct. 1892. n. pag. Rutgers Thomas Edison Papers.

Web.

This article came from the end of the Current War, with Westinghouse ultimately bidding

and winning to light up the Chicago World’s fair. It was extremely enlightening to see

how the public viewed both Westinghouse and the domination of Alternating Current,

and demonstrated how the public was generally unknowing of the massive conflicts

taking place in the companies.

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“Wizard Edison Wins.” 27 Mar. 1895.

This article showed the battles that Edison already faced in his business, demonstrating

his already developed business acumen in contrast to Tesla's pure ingenuity. This sharp

business acumen would require Westinghouse to become involved, furthering the conflict

of the current war.

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Secondary Sources

Bussler, Mark, director. The Westinghouse Documentary. The History of George Westinghouse,

Westinghouse Nuclear Division, 8 Apr. 2008.

The video was a documentary of Westinghouse, covering his life, but spending much time

on the Current War. This gave me much more understanding of the topic because of its

viewpoint from Westinghouse, despite its pro-Westinghouse standpoint. It allowed me to

get a closer view of the role that Westinghouse played in the Current War, especially when

brought into context with the rest of my research and the other accounts that I had read.

Carlson, W. Bernard. Tesla: Inventor of the Electrical Age. Princeton University Press, 2015.

I found this book because of Carlson's lecture with Microsoft (Also cited in this

bibliography). The book was extremely helpful as a supplement to understand the effects

Tesla has had on this world, as well as how people such as Westinghouse and his business

associates changed the presentation of Tesla to become successful and ultimately influence

the world.

Cawthorne, Nigel. Tesla vs. Edison: the Life-Long Feud That Electrified the World. Chartwell

Books, 2016.

This book provided valuable information on both Edison and Tesla. While it did not focus

as much on the feud between the two men, it was very valuable in putting the events of the

two men's lives on the same timeline.

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Chandrasekhar, R. Reflections on the Mind of Nikola Tesla. Mind Of Tesla. University of

Western Australia, 27 Aug. 2006. Web.

The article, although written by an information specialist, provides insight into the mind

of Tesla by citing primary sources and reports. This illuminates the conflict within Tesla

as well as how that conflict would spur outside struggles as well.

“Edison.” History Channel, A+E, 11 Sept. 2016.

While this source was full of content for the sake of contrarianism, I found that the

interviews contained within were very enlightening in stripping away the public persona

that Edison put on and seeing how he was the first inventor to use celebrity to enhance his

business status. This documentary was used in my website on the competitors page,

specifically the interview with Jill Jonnes.

Invester, Rob, et al. “The Battle of the Energy Inventors.” Department of Energy, United States

Government, 21 Nov. 2013, Accessed 15 Jan. 2018.

Half Scientific and Half historical, these interviews were extremely helpful in

enlightening me on the scientific background of both the technology in the current war

(AC and DC), but also of the actors, George Westinghouse, Nikola Tesla, and Thomas

Edison, themselves, as the questions asked illuminated differences in the actors as well as

the fundamental differences between AC and DC.

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Israel, Paul. Edison: a Life of Invention. John Wiley Et Sons, 2000.

Edison: a Life of Invention, was specifically helpful in establishing the fundamental

thought behind how Edison worked, as well as being a very nicely unbiased source in a

time when the Edison vs. Tesla controversy is running hot. This book also gave me the

insight to ask Professor Paul Israel for an interview, which was exceptionally helpful as a

clarifying and re-instancing source.

Jonnes, Jill. Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World.

Random House, 2003.

This book was most notable for helping me understand the essential part Westinghouse

had in offering Edison a compromise, which, turning it down, led Edison to be

marginalized within his own company. The book changed my view of the war in

clarifying the fact that there was only space in the electric system for one methodology,

either AC or DC.

Jonnes, Jill. "Thomas Edison: Let There Be Light." Time. Time Inc., 23 June 2010. Web.

This source writes about Edison's ventures in one of the major battlegrounds between

Edison and Tesla, the electric light. It also demonstrates Edison's mindset of stubbornness

and invention in his creation process, as well as his ability to improve on others' work.
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Lantero, Allison. “The War of the Currents: AC vs. DC Power.” Energy.gov, 18 Nov. 2013,

energy.gov/articles/war-currents-ac-vs-dc-power.

This was an article from the Department of Energy, to celebrate the rivalry between

Edison and Tesla. It was very informative and helped me obtain a timeline-style

understanding, as well as direct me to additional sources and books through the event

itself.

McNichol, Tom. AC/DC: the Savage Tale of the First Standards War. Jossey-Bass, 2006.

This book was one of the few that also covered Westinghouse's involvement in the

Current War in close perspective, allowing me to get a glimpse of Westinghouse's

interactions with the other two inventors, as well as giving me a clarifying view into what

exactly made them such fierce enemies. This book also gave a very good large picture

view of the entire Current War.

Moran, Richard. "Thomas Edison: Shock Treatment." Time. Time Inc., 23 June 2010. Web.

The article demonstrated how Edison, in an attempt to discredit AC current, a method that

Tesla popularized and supported, gruesomely electrocuted a criminal to death, showing

just how far the geniuses went in their conflict with each other, and how their morals

were compromised by their conflict (different use of word intentional).

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“My Million Dollar Invention: Shock and Awe.” The Electric Chair, Smithsonian, 22 May 2015.

This was a dramatized modern version of the events that occurred during Edison's

defamation campaign. I used this video on the sabotage and execution page of my

website. While not very informative, the video helped me gain an understanding that the

Current War quite literally played with lives, and collateral damages from the defamation

campaign includes terrifying inventions such as the electric chair.

Patrick, Sean. Nikola Tesla: Imagination and the Man That Invented the 20th Century. Sold by

Amazon Digital Services, 2013.

This book was another extremely helpful source in understanding and getting into the

mind of an eccentric genius: primarily Nikola Tesla. I found this book able to clearly

follow Tesla's life and actions more than other books on Tesla, which gave me a clearer

glimpse into the cause and effect chain inside his life that led to his eventual downfall.

Stross, Randall E. The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Alva Edison Invented the Modern

World. Three Rivers Press, 2008.

This book gave a very close look at how Edison interacted with others, which was vital in

understanding his defamation campaign of AC as well as to understand how Edison,

despite not winning the current War, still mightly influenced AC in his actions and

interactions with Tesla and Westinghouse. This book also exposed Edison out of the

legendary costume that he is often put into.

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Stross, Randall. "Thomas Edison: The Incredible Talking Machine." Time. Time Inc., 23 June

2010. Web.

A source using the phonograph as a case study of how, despite being a better

businessman than Tesla, Edison was not often able to understand what the public wanted.

This helped me establish a contrast between both geniuses and the rest of humanity,

whereas previously I had had only a contrast between the two of them. This could

demonstrate the differences that made the clashes between Edison and Tesla so explosive.

“Tesla: Inventor of the Electrical Age.” Microsoft, Research, 9 Sept. 2016.

This was a lecture given by Bernard Carlson, writer of Tesla: Inventor of the Electrical

Age. The lecture clarified my understanding of who Tesla was, his thought processes, and

why his life turned out the way it did. Ultimately, this video was pivotal in giving me a

basic understanding of one of the three major members of the Current War.
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Interviews

Zou, Joshua, and Paul Israel. “Interview with Paul Israel.” 9 Feb. 2018.

Zou, Joshua, and Nathan Kapoor. “Interview with Nathan Kapoor.” 7 Feb. 2018

Zou, Joshua, and Jane Alcorn. “Interview with Jane Alcorn.” 12 Feb. 2018