1889 Edison realized that had
the potential become revolutionary technology that could
transform the production iron and steel, one America's
major industries. His
ore milling company would his "Standard Oil"— large,
highly efficient operation with few competitors and incredible
profits. What started one more promising
experimental result turned into massive effort reorient
the slow westward shift the iron and steel industry and
revitalize Eastern blast furnaces, which were steady decline
because the exhaustion iron ores the Northeastern
corridor. New Jersey still had large
deposits low grade ore, and Edison thought his separating
machines could make paying proposition out these dead
mines, reversing the westward migration steel mills and
giving him profitable monopoly major source ore. Shortage ore had forced iron masters import
iron ore from Cuba and Spain.VI-19
EDISON'S FOLLY:THE ORE MILLING VENTURE
The appeal ore milling Edison was its profit. The magnetic separation ores had
been one the many experimental programs undertaken the
lab its first decade. He
prided himself the practicality his innovations and in
1892 claimed that ore milling was the most "commercial"
thing had ever done. the height the project envisaged running 8
large mills New Jersey with total yearly output over
