with a little help from Thomas Edison
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| Sidewalk construction, 200 block Middle Street, looking north, Summer 1908. |
by John B. Green III
Sidewalks of some sort, made of various materials, had existed in parts of New Bern at different times in the town's history. Whether made of hard-packed earth, planks, or bricks, they were haphazard affairs which seldom lasted long. The town commissioners were occasionally involved in their construction or maintenance, but they were just as likely to represent the efforts of individual property owners. No uniform, durable sidewalk system for the entire town existed.
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| Bronze plaque set in sidewalk, northeast corner of New and Metcalf streets. Photograph taken in 1986 by the author |
All this changed in 1908. The New Bern Board of Aldermen, at their meeting of April 7, accepted bids for the construction of concrete sidewalks with granite curbing for most of downtown New Bern. Alsop & Peirce, Contractors of Newport News, Virginia, would construct the concrete sidewalks, and Peeler Bane Fisher Company of Faith, North Carolina, would supply the granite curbing. The project would be supervised by the firm of Colvin and Henry, Civil Engineers.
The photograph seen at the top is of the 200 block of Middle Street looking north and shows the construction of sidewalks in summer of 1908. The number of signs for Alsop & Peirce, Contractors and New Bern Building Supply Company indicate that the scene is a slightly posed publicity photograph. New Bern Building Supply Company proudly supplied the cement used in the sidewalk construction, and that cement was Edison Cement, as the numerous signs proclaim. This brings us to Thomas Edison and his role, however distant, in the construction of New Bern's sidewalks.
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| Detail showing Edison Cement signs. |
Thomas Alva Edison was one of the United States' most energetic inventors of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is chiefly remembered for his work with electricity and sound recording but he also dabbled in many areas of science and industry as the mood struck him. Edison was involved in improving the milling of iron ore in the 1880s. His company's process produced, as a byproduct, a fine sand which found a market with the makers of cement. Edison decided to form his own cement business and improve the manufacturing process. The Edison Portland Cement Company was established in 1899, and by 1908 its product was successful enough to be known and used in New Bern.
