Details
Thomas Edison came to Charlotte in 1890 to test out a theory. He wanted to see if it was possible to use electricity to separate gold from other sediment in the processing of gold. It didn’t work. However while in Charlotte the celebrity was a desired guest among Charlotte’s elites. Edward Dilworth Latta, owner of the Charlotte Consolidated Construction Company, was just such a person. On Friday February 21, 1890 Mr. Latta had a big dinner at his house on North Tryon Street. He invited the who’s who of Charlotte citizens (you can read the full story in the Charlotte News from February 24, 1890). It was at this dinner that Latta discussed with Edison his plans to run electric street cars out to the “country” to a new neighborhood named Dilworth. The two agreed to work together to introduce the electric streetcar to the city, providing service to Dilworth, Charlotte's first "suburb."
Location
307 Lincoln Street View on Google Maps
Charlotte, NC 28203
