Who really invented the lightbulb?

In 1879 Thomas Alva Edison invented the lightbulb... Or so you thought. More likely than not, everything you know about Edison’s famous accomplishment is wrong. The invention of the lightbulb was a process that took nearly a century—and it didn’t begin with Edison. Inventors had been trying to perfect electric light since before Edison was even born. The first semi-successful attempt was made in 1807, when British chemist Humphry Davy used a primitive battery to make an arc of light between two charcoal sticks. Davy’s light was too bright to be used in the home, but it became the first electric option for streetlights. Dozens of lightbulb designs followed, by inventors like Warren de la Rue (his platinum filament too expensive), William Staite (his batteries too expensive), and Joseph Swan (his light too inefficient). Then came Edison. He purchased some of his predecessor’s patents, learned from their mistakes... and the lightbulb he invented in 1879 still only worked for short periods of time. So why does Edison get all the credit? In 1880 Edison discovered the right material for his lightbulb’s filament: carbonized bamboo fiber, which burned longer than any other material yet tested. The bulb still wasn’t perfect, but Edison had the reputation and financial backing to see it through as part of an electrical system that could power it. In 1882 the first permanent commercial central power system became operative in Lower Manhattan. Electrically lit hotels, theaters, and storefronts flourished—as did Edison’s reputation as the world’s greatest inventor.