1. Thomas Edison was born on February 11, 1874 in Milan, Ohio. He had two wives and three children with his first wife Mary Stilwell who he married in 1871 when she was 16 years old. 2. As a child, Edison had hearing problems and left school early, with his mother providing his education at home. 3. While Edison did not invent the light bulb itself, he invented the first commercially practical incandescent light bulb, making electric lighting viable for widespread use. Earlier light bulbs were difficult to employ on a large scale.