Foreword / by Gary Hoover -- Origins -- Working on the railroad -- It's hard to stop a train -- The Smoky City -- Straight air brakes -- Automatic air brakes -- What's a Wilmerding? -- Two trains, one track -- Solitude -- Gas pains -- More energy -- AC or DC -- Assembling the pieces -- The greatest inventor who ever lived -- The greatest experimenter who ever lived -- Bankers always win -- Dying for electricity -- The worst of times -- The White City -- Over a barrel at Niagara -- New lands to conquer -- Rotary redux -- Trolleys and trains -- Panic! -- Homes and family -- Retirement, honors, and death -- Memorials -- The next century.
Summary:
"While most know Thomas Edison for his invention of the light bulb, his counterpart of the generation, George Westinghouse, is too often overlooked. Westinghouse, however, became known as one of the most prolific inventors and businessmen of the Industrial Revolution. In this biography, get to know the man whose teachers suspected was mentally disabled and quit college after one semester, yet founded more than 60 different companies employing 50,000 people and received 361 U.S. patents. Westinghouse later fought the "Battle of the Currents" with Thomas Edison and won. He, with his engineers, provided power and light for the "Great White City," the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. They harnessed the massive power of Niagara Falls and sent it over wires to light Buffalo and eventually the Northeast. His electric engines powered trains, and his air brakes stopped them. Through this book, understand how Westinghouse's scientific contributions shaped and forever changed the world"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.