The industrial revolution would lead to the discovery of even more impressive technologies. The late 19th and early 20th centuries was a time of great technological transformation. It can be easy to overlook the fact that today's world of handheld wonder would not exist were it not for the achievements of the early pioneers in the field of electrical engineering.

The Current War & The World’s Fair

“The Chicago World’s Fair -- also known as the World’s Columbian Exposition -- took place in 1893, at the height of the Current War.

General Electric bid to electrify the fair using Edison’s direct current for $554,000, but lost to George Westinghouse, who said he could power the fair for only $399,000 using Tesla’s alternating current.

That same year, the Niagara Falls Power Company decided to award Westinghouse -- who had licensed Tesla’s polyphase AC induction motor patent -- the contract to generate power from Niagara Falls. Although some doubted that the falls could power all of Buffalo, New York, Tesla was convinced it could power not only Buffalo, but also the entire Eastern United States.

On Nov. 16, 1896, Buffalo was lit up by the alternating current from Niagara Falls. By this time General Electric had decided to jump on the alternating current train, too.” • U.S. Department of Energy

Nikola Tesla & George Westinghouse

“Tesla patented his AC motors and power systems, which were said to be the most valuable inventions since the telephone. Soon, George Westinghouse, recognizing that Tesla’s designs might be just what he needed in his efforts to unseat Edison’s DC current, licensed his patents for $60,000 in stocks and cash and royalties based on how much electricity Westinghouse could sell. Ultimately, he won the “War of the Currents,” but at a steep cost in litigation and competition for both Westinghouse and Edison’s General Electric Company.” • Gilbert King – Smithsonian Magazine

Learn More:

Lives of the electricians : Professors Tyndall, Wheatstone, and Morse. First series

History of Electrical Engineering • Electricity • A History of The Theories of Aether & Electricity

Experiments with Alternate Currents of High Potential and High Frequency by Nikola Tesla

The History of Electronic Components • Electrical Engineering Timeline • War Of The Currents

Westinghouse Electric Corporation • General Electric • Charles Proteus Steinmetz • Steinmetz's Equation

General Lectures On Electrical Engineering • Theory and Calculation of Alternating Current Phenomena

Steinmetz’s Four Lectures on Relativity and Space

Electrostatic Generator • Static Electricity • Atmospheric Electricity • Sprite (lightning)

The Most Electric Place On Earth: The Beacon of Maracaibo, The “Everlasting Storm”

Electric Charge • Electromagnetic Field • Dielectric Defined • How The Human Body Uses Electricity