Mrs. Edison’s Son, A Beautiful True Story

The story of Mrs. Edison’s son begins in a small town in New York State called Chenango County.

On January 4, 1810, a very smart girl was born, whom her parents called Nancy. Nancy Elliot, to be exact. They say that his parents were humble and kind people.

Nancy’s father enlisted in the British army during the US War of Independence. He served for eight years. Meanwhile, Nancy’s mother took care of her studies, something that wasn’t very common at the time. In this way, the girl acquired rudimentary knowledge on various subjects.

The story also tells that, during her youth, Nancy worked as a teacher. Also, as was customary at the time, the girl got married very young. Her husband, Samuel Edison, was a Presbyterian and very attached to his religion.

He was less educated than Nancy. Still, they formed a stable home. That’s how, in this true story, Nancy became Mrs. Edison.

a dedicated mother

The family moved to Milan, Ohio, in the United States. There, they managed to have a quiet life, without great pressure, but very marked by work. Mrs. Edison had seven children. Unfortunately, the oldest four died very young. This, while not uncommon, was very painful.

On February 11, 1847, Nancy gave birth to her seventh child. She was 37 years old and already an experienced mother. Therefore, Mrs. Edison already knew how to take care of a newborn and how to give it the best care to prevent it from becoming ill and having the same fate as its older brothers.

The Edison family named their new son Thomas. Like Nancy, this child was very smart and extremely restless. He was here and there, always talking, always asking.

For Nancy Elliot, who had been a teacher, this was not a problem. She simply let her son develop his temper freely.

The true story of Mrs. Edison’s son

Mrs. Edison’s true story tells that when he was 8 years old, his parents took Thomas to school. At that time, this was the usual age to start school.

The boy was not a good student. He couldn’t concentrate on his classes and hated math. Besides, his teachers were far from considering that behind that restless child there could be a brilliant mind.

At this point, the story has two versions. The first points out that Mrs. Edison’s son came home one day with a note from his teacher. He handed it to his mother and she was a little taken aback to read it.

Afterwards, she told the boy that the note only said that the school had nothing else to teach him and that, from then on, she would take care of his education. In fact, the note said that Thomas had been expelled from school.

However, the other version indicates that, after reading the note, Mrs. Edison personally went to the school and said “good little” to the teacher. She berated him for his inability to understand the children who were like Thomas and assured him that he would succeed without the need for a formal education.

Thomas’ fate

It doesn’t matter which of the two versions is true. Basically, both correspond to the essence of this story. Mrs. Edison did not allow her son to suffer the consequences of an inoperative system.

It is known that, in fact, she took care of his education. It was a great luck that Thomas received a higher education than other children his age.

Thomas grew up reading great literary works. The mother noticed the child’s taste for science and provided him with readings and classes that stimulated this interest.

When Thomas was 24 years old, Nancy died. A short time earlier, she had been committed to a sanatorium due to a mental breakdown.

It is said that at this time Thomas became aware of all that his mother had done for him. They say that in their diary, Thomas Alva Edison, one of the greatest inventors in history, wrote: “Mom was the most enthusiastic advocate any child could have, and it was exactly at this moment that I made the decision that I would be worthy of her and that I would show her that she wasn’t wrong.”