Thomas Edison, Chemist

In 1927 Thomas Edison joined Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone to establish the Edison Botanic Research Corporation to investigate a domestically produced source of rubber. His background in materials science and business made him uniquely qualified to lead the search for this critically important material, and the following year he built this botanical laboratory, where more than 7000 plant samples from around the world were analyzed for their latex content. One group of plants, Solidago, commonly known as goldenrod, was selected as the most promising, and Edison's team crossbred species to increase their rubber content and tested industrial production. When Edison died in 1931, the rubber project continued for five years until it was transferred to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Fort Myers, Florida · United States