Explore: Thomas Edison Depot Museum in Port Huron
(Crystal A. Proxmire, Nov. 11, 2023)
Port Huron, MI – Renowned inventor Thomas Edison was born in Ohio, but raised in Port Huron, MI.
In this city that welcomes giant ships from the Great Lakes, and visitors by bridge from Canada, there is a train depot that’s been turned into a museum in his honor.
The Thomas Edison Depot Museum shares Edison’s life and ideas. Edison lived from 1847-1931. He was curious and inventive even as a child, as as he grew he took jobs where he could learn about technology, including as a telegraph operator and a news reporter.
Edison and his team’s inventions helped bring reliable electric lights to homes, music to the world through phonographs, and film through the motion picture camera. Not only did he patent over a thousand items, he set up laboratories and employed others to work on research and innovation in a number of fields. His savvy with the media and skill in branding made him a household name. The patents were often improvements on existing inventions, and his team was a big part of the process.
The Thomas Edison Depot Museum opened in 2001 as part of the Port Huron Museum, and is housed inside the historic Fort Gratiot train depot that was built in 1858. This is the actual depot that Edison worked out of as a news reporter between 1859-1863. “Trains connecting here carried people and freight between Port Huron and Detroit, Point Edward/Sarnia (Ontario), and other destinations, linking Port Huron to the rest of the world,” the museum’s website says.
While the museum celebrates Edison’s successes, it also shows a “transitional area” that “depicts Edison’s struggles as a young adult as he drifted from one job to another, experiencing repeated setbacks in his inventions. This leads into the story of Edison the inventor.”
The museum has programming for students, including those that introduce them to Edison’s scientific principles: electricity and magnetism. And there is a gift shop. The museum is located right below the Blue Water Bridge, at 510 Edison Parkway in Port Huron.
There are fall hours on Saturdays and Sundays. Learn more at https://www.phmuseum.org/thomas-edison-depot-museum/
