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A SELECTIVE MICROFILM EDITION
PART III
(1887–1898)
Thomas E. Jeffrey
Microfilm Editor and Associate Director
| Gregory Field | Mary Ann Hellrigel |
| Theresa M. Collins | Paul B. Israel |
| David W. Hutchings | Robert A. Rosenberg |
| Lisa Gitelman | Karen A. Detig |
| Leonard DeGraaf | Gregory Jankunis |
| Dennis D. Madden | Douglas G. Tarr |
| Editors | |
Reese V. Jenkins
Director and Editor
Sponsors
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
National Park Service, Edison National Historic Site
New Jersey Historical Commission
Smithsonian Institution
University Publications of America
An Imprint of CIS
4520 East-West Highway · Bethesda, Maryland 20814-3389
1993
Acknowledgments
A project of the scale and complexity of the Thomas A. Edison Papers can only be successful through the encouragement, cooperative endeavor, and support of many individuals and organizations. The editors of the Edison Papers are fortunate to have the strong backing of the project's Sponsors: Rutgers, The State University; the National Park Service; the New Jersey Historical Commission; and the Smithsonian Institution. Representatives of the sponsoring institutions who have given support and direction to the project include from Rutgers University, President Francis L. Lawrence, Vice-President Joseph J. Seneca, Dean Richard F. Foley, and History Department Chairperson Rudolph M. Bell; from the National Park Service, North Atlantic Region Director Marie Rust and Curator John Maounis; from the National Park Service's Edison National Historic Site, Superintendent Maryanne Gerbauckas, Supervisory Museum Curator Nancy Waters, Supervisory Archivist George Tselos; from the Smithsonian Institution, Curators Bernard S. Finn and Arthur P. Molella; and from the New Jersey Historical Commission, Historian Howard L. Green. In addition, the editors are indebted to numerous former members of the Board of Sponsors, including Edward J. Bloustein (deceased), T. Alexander Pond, Tilden G. Edelstein, Richard L. McCormick, Fahy Whitaker, Edward J. Pershey, Mary B. Bowling, and Bernard Bush.
The preparation of this edition was made possible through support from Rutgers University, the National Park Service, public and private foundations, private corporations, and individuals—as acknowledged in the pages preceding this preface. Especially notable were grants from the Program in Research Tools (Editions/Text) in the Division of Research at the National Endowment for the Humanities; from the Program in Studies in Science, Technology, and Society (formerly the History and Philosophy of Science) and the Engineering Division at the National Science Foundation under Grants DIR-85-21524 and DIR-91-12303; from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission; and from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation of New York City and the Charles Edison Fund of East Orange, New Jersey.
The editors appreciate the interest and support of many program officers and trustees, especially Douglas M. Arnold, Margot Backas, Ronald Overmann, Nancy Sahli, Richard N. Sheldon, Kathryn A. Jacob, Mary Giunta, Arthur L. Singer, Ralph E. Gomory, Paul Christiansen, David Shantz, John P. Keegan, and Thomas L. Morrissey. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendatins expressed in this publication are solely those of the editors and do not necessarily reflect the views of any of the above federal foundations or agencies, the United States Government, or any other financial contributor.
Within the institutional settings for the two offices of the Edison Papers, many individuals have contributed either directly or indirectly. At the Edison National Historic Site—where all of the documents contained in Part III are located—Edward Wirth, director of the archives processing project, has played an important role in supervising the creation of the various record groups on which this edition is based. Other present and former members of the archives processing team who have assisted include John Attanasio, Henry Brown, Kathryn Bryan, Thomas and May Crooke, Todd Daniels-Howell, Leonard DeGraaf, Robert Engel, James Fox, Rekha Gandhi, Alan Ginsburg, Marilyn Gisser, Steven Higgins, Emilie Jeanneney, L. Rebecca Johnson, John-Paul Richiuso, Madeline Rogers, Douglas Sterling, and Steven Ziolkowski. Others in the curatorial division have also contributed in a variety of capacities, including Leah Burt, Kenneth Chandler, Jerry Fabris, Marilyn Kyles, Anne Markham, Gregory Schmidl, and Douglas Tarr.
Many associates at Rutgers University have contributed significantly to the Edison Papers. Joseph A. Potenza and Paul L. Leath, Provosts at Rutgers in New Brunswick and Bruce Newman and Richard Lloyd of the Rutgers University Foundation have made the project a genuine priority. The editors are appreciative of the efforts of colleagues in the History Department: especially James W. Reed, Rudy Bell, Susan Schrepfer, Philip J. Pauly, Michael Adas, William Aspray, and Richard L. McCormick; and members of the Rutgers University Libraries, notably Ruth Simmons, Ronald L. Becker, Jeanne Boyle, Peggy Weniger, and Patricia Ann Piermatti. The support of the Rutgers University administration has encouraged the editors and facilitated their work. The staff of the project especially thank Joseph J. Seneca, Richard M. Norman, Nancy Winterbauer, Donald B. Edwards, William W. Owens, Jr., Peter Klein, Robert F. Pack, John S. Salapatas, Barbara J. Callaway, James B. Coe, Dorothea B. Hoekzema, Lisa Hendricks Richardson, Andrew B. Rudczynski, David A. Rumbo, Barbara A. Reis, Albert Hanna, Ronald Thompson, Felicia T. F. Yu, Donna J. Estler, Mildred A. Timmons, Beth A. Palaia, Patricia M. Anderson, Jacquelyn Halvsa, Cynthia Lydia Jucks, Joseph M. Harrigan, Constance Bonheimer, Judith A. Garelick, Irma Lucy Cardinale, and Sameerah Diaab Allen.
The Edison Papers is fortunate to have University Publications of America (now an imprint of the Congressional Information Service) as publisher for this microfilm edition. The staff of CIS have responded well to the needs of this unusually complex microfilm edition. Especially notable in their effort for Part III are Paul Kesaris, Vice President, UPA Editorial; William Idol, Operations Manager, CIS Manufacturing; and camera operator Gloria Robinson.
Numerous other individuals have also contributed to Part III of the microfilm edition. Charles Musser has provided counsel regarding Edison's work on motion pictures. Bruce Abrams, New York County Clerk Office, Division of Old Records, supplied information regarding several New York-based Edison companies. Especially notable help came from Nathan Reingold, Thomas P. Hughes, Edward C. Carter II, Melvin Kranzberg, Raymond R. Wile, Carolyn Miller, and Robert Friedel.
The editors of the Edison Papers conclude their acknowledgements with a special note of appreciation for two members of the staff who are absolutely central to the work of this project. Our Assistant to the Director, Helen Endick, and Secretary, Grace Kurkowski, are both highly talented and deeply devoted individuals. They perform their jobs in a truly outstanding manner and do a number of editorial, as well as administrative, tasks. Their talent, devotion, and good humor continue to greatly facilitate the work of this project.
