Thomas Edison was an amazing man and the foresight he had before the 20th Century shows he was a man well ahead of his time. Where would be with electricity, batteries, recorded music, movies, natural rubber? As you can see, I am in complete awe of the man. Visiting his winter estate and seeing that he was a man who had a nice home but not over indulgent and he was not afraid of work. He worked until he was around 84 years old with his last accomplishment being the invention of natural rubber that could be produced from trees grown in the U.S. Edison and his wife Mina came to Fort Myers on vacation in 1885. He was looking for a place in the south to get out of the New Jersey winters. He liked Fort Myers and purchased 13 acres along the Caloosahatchee river and built his home. He named it Seminole Logde in honor of a local Indian Tribe. Since a trip to Fort Myers back in the 1880s took days family and guests, once they arrived, would stay for weeks or months. Edison and his family and guests enjoyed fishing, boating, reading, playing board games, picnics and walks around the grounds. Henry Ford, a good friend of Edison, came for a visit in 1914 and decided to buy the property right next store so he could winter with his friend. The home he purchased was called the Mangoes and he bought the property with the home for $20,000.
The Edison Laboratory was built because Edison never stopped inventing. He was a man who had ideas and he would work on them at all hours. He did not need a lot of sleep but when he got tired he would take a cap nap. He could sleep anywhere whether it be on a table or floor in his lab to the ground when he was out picnicing or camping. His labortory was built in 1886. It was mainly a botanical lab due to WWI when rubber was a demand he made it his mission to find a tree that could produce the product needed to create natural rubber. The Banyan trees were the key and they are planted on the back portion of the estate. His last invention was natural rubber.
The Edison museum is a seven galleries that relate to the lives of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. There are several exhibits of Edison's inventions. Henry Food also had some exhibits but most of his items are in his museum in Michigan.
Our visit to the Edison/Ford estates was fun and a learning experience. It is not a place to take young children but it is a relaxful day, walking around grounds of the beautiful estate along the Caloosahatchee river and remembering what remarkable men Thomas Edison and Henry Ford were. When in the Fort Myers area, this is a place that is worth visiting. It only took a couple of hours to visit the estates so the rest of the afternoon was spent looking for furniture for the RV. I am happy to report, after visiting every furniture store in Ft. Myers, that we had purchased a leather recliner and two side tables to complete our livingroom. We love the new furnishings. They look great and are very comfortable and durable. I will include pictures tomorrow. Today, I have posted our visit to the Edison/Ford estates and the RV resort. We will be heading to Fort Myers Beach today!
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