Edwin James Houston (July 9, 1847 – March 1, 1914) was an American author, electrical engineer, academic, businessman, and inventor.
Contents
Early life
Houston was born July 9, 1847, to John Mason and Mary (Lamour) Houston in Alexandria, Virginia. He graduated from Central High School of Philadelphia (a degree-granting institution rather than an ordinary high school) in 1864. He received both his Bachelor of Arts and master's degree from the same Central High School.
Career
Houston then became a professor of civil engineering at Central High School for a short period before holding its chair of Natural Philosophy and Physical Geography.
While teaching physics at Central High School in Philadelphia, he helped design an arc light generator with his former student colleague Elihu Thomson. Together, they created the Thomson-Houston Electric Company in 1882 which soon after moved to Lynn, Massachusetts. He served as chief electrician of Philadelphia's International Electrical Exhibition in 1884.
In 1892, Thomson-Houston merged with the Edison General Electric Company to form General Electric, with management from Thomson-Houston largely running the new company. In 1894, Houston formed a consulting firm in electrical engineering with Arthur Kennelly. He and Kennelly had also jointly published a series called "Primers of Electricity" in 1884.
He also served as emeritus professor of physics at the Franklin Institute and professor of physics at the Medico-Chirurgical College.
Houston was twice president of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (1893–1895). He was a member of the United States Electrical Commission, the American Institute of Mining Engineers, the American Philosophical Society and many others. He also authored books for a series called The Wonder Books of Science.
Awards and honors
Princeton University awarded him an honorary doctoral degree.
Personal life
He died from heart failure in Philadelphia on March 1, 1914.
Selected publications
Books
Elements of Physical Geology. Philadelphia: Eldredge & Brother, 1878, 1901, and 1904.
Intermediate Lessons in Natural Philosophy Philadelphia: Eldredge & Brother, 1881.
Elements of Chemistry: for the use of Schools, Academies, and Colleges Philadelphia: Eldredge & Brother, 1883 and 1898.
A Short Course in Chemistry. Philadelphia: Eldridge & Brother, 1884.
Primers of Forestry. Philadelphia: Edwin J. Houston, 1891.
Rain Produced At Will. Chicago: Edwin J. Houston, 1891.
Electrical Measurements and Other Advanced Primers of Electricity. New York: The W. J. Johnston Company, Limited, 1893.
The Electric Transmission of Intelligence: and Other Advanced Primers of Electricity New York: The W. J. Johnston Company, Limited, 1893.
Outlines of Forestry; Or, The Elementary Principles Underlying the Science of Forestry. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1893.
Electricity One Hundred Years Ago and Today. New York: The W. J. Johnston Company, Ltd., 1894.
A Dictionary of Electrical Words, Terms and Phrases. New York: P. F. Collier, 1894.
Alternating Electric Currents with Arthur E. Kennelley. New York: The W. J. Johnston Company, 1895.
Electrical Engineering Leaflets: Advanced Grade with Arthur E. Kennelley. New York: The Electrical Engineer, 1895.
Children's books
Houston's Outlines of Natural Philosophy. Philadelphia: Claxton, Remsen & Haffelfinger, 1878.
Houston's Easy Lessons in Natural Philosophy. Philadelphia: Eldredge and Brother, 1879.
The Boy Geologist: at School and in Camp. Philadelphia: Henry Altemus Company, 1907.
The Boy Electrician, or The Secret Society of the Jolly Philosophers. Philadelphia; London, J. B. Lippincott, 1907.
The Wonder Book of Volcanoes and Earthquakes. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1907.
The Wonder Book of the Atmosphere. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1907.
The Wonder Book of the Light. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1908.
The Wonder Book of the Magnetism. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1908.
A Chip of the Old Block; or, At the Bottom of the Ladder (The Young Mineralogist Series). Philadelphia: The Griffith & Rowland Press, 1910.
The Land of Drought; or, Across the Great American Desert. (The Young Mineralogist Series) Philadelphia: The Griffith & Rowland Press,1910.
The Jaws of Death; or, In and Around the Cañons of the Colorado. (The Young Mineralogist Series) Philadelphia: The Griffith & Rowland Press, 1911.
The Yellow Magnet; or, Attracted by Gold. (The Young Mineralogist Series) Philadelphia: The Griffith & Rowland Press, 1911
Journal articles
"Glimpses of the international electrical exhibition", Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 118, no. 6 (December 1884): 449–459.
"On Some Early Forms of Electric Furnaces: No. 4. Johnson's Electric Furnace". Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 125, no. 4 (April 1888): 300-305.
"The physiological effects of alternating currents of high frequency", Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 134, no. 1 (1892): 71–74
"Some additional notes on the graphic representation or magnetic fields", Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 134, no. 3 (1892): 240–244.
"Cerebral Radiation", Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 133, no. 6 (1892): 488–497.
"Graphic representation or the magnetic field", Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 134, no. 1 (1892) 75–86
"Some curiosities in early electroth-therapeutics", Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 134, no. 5 (1892): 402–409.
"The international electrical congress and world's fair, of 1893". Transactions of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, vol. 10, (1893): 464–483.
"A Plea for the Study of Elementary Forestry in the Lower Schools". Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 137, no. 2 (1894): 107–117.
"Resonance in Alternating Current Lines" with A. E. Kennelly. Transactions of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, vol. 12, (1895): 133-157.
"The Rontgen Rays" with A. E. Kennelly. Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 141, no. 4, (April 1896): 241-278.