Within two years, Steinmetz had built three new schools and enlarged 2 more and built numerous playgrounds, set up a system of school meals, set up systems of school doctors, and created an epidemic plan (which was good timing as the pandemic of 1918 was just about to arrive). [7] GE research laboratory was the source of many important discoveries over the years and was an inspiration for other research labs, like Bell labs which were created in 1925.[8]. Without Charles Steinmetz's theories of alternating current, the expansion of the electric power industry in the United States in the early 20th century would have been greatly delayed. The Charles P. Steinmetz Scholarship is awarded annually by the college,[33] underwritten since its inception in 1923 by the General Electric Company. By 1914, as I said before, Steinmetz agreed to let Edison use his words and images to promote Edisons battery. [18] Sender Garlin Charles P. Steinmetz, scientist and socialist (American Institute for Marxist Studies, 1977), 12. This law deals with the power loss that occurs in all electrical devices when magnetic action is converted to unusable heat. The Story of Steinmetz and Joseph LeRoy Hayden, Steinmetz, Albert Einstein & Thomas Edison, American Institute of Electrical Engineers, https://nyheritage.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/schmuse/id/119/rec/5, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ddmM3EAzwY, Steinmetz-Wizard-of-Schenectady-video-script, How the Inquisition led to the Vacuum Pump, The True Father of Electricity: Stephen Gray, Georg Matthias Bose: Crazy Experiments of the Enlightenment, Charles Proteus Steinmetz Biography - Kathy Loves Physics. He fostered the development of alternating current that made possible the expansion of the electric power industry in the United States, formulating mathematical theories for engineers. This civilization not for a minority depending on the labor of masses of slaves or serfs but a real civilization of benefit to all the members of the human race.[20], Steinmetz was also an early leader in electric cars! As I said before, GE was delighted and decided to use this meeting to promote the company and worked overtime to promote the Steinmetz-Edison connection and the story of Steinmetz, which is why they photoshopped that picture of Einstein and Steinmetz so it looked like it was just the two of them. 10 (Feb 1913), 1020. This was his last major project at the General Electric Company, where he had become head of the engineering consulting department. He was baptized a Lutheran into the Evangelical Church of Prussia. To educate the electrical engineering profession, he published several textbooks, including Engineering Mathematics (1911), and expanded his original 1897 book into three separate volumes. In 1911, Steinmetz recalled that Schenectady had a reputation at that time of being very similar to a cemetery. The house was too large for Steinmetz, and the Haydens suspected what might be coming. Charles Proteus Steinmetz/Places lived, April 9, 1865 America was entering a golden age of electrical engineering, and when Thomas Edison and General Electric learned what Steinmetz was doing with electric motors in Yonkers, the company bought out Eickemeyer and Osterheld in 1892, acquiring all of Steinmetzs patents as well as his services. Forced to leave Germany because of his socialist activities, he emigrated to the U.S. in 1889 and began working for General Electric Co. in 1893. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. It does not store any personal data. [44], Steinmetz was portrayed in 1959 by the actor Rod Steiger in the CBS television anthology series, The Joseph Cotten Show. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE), American Institute of Electrical Engineers, International Municipal Signal Association (IMSA), "Theory of the General Alternating Current Transformer", "The Natural Period of a Transmission Line and the Frequency of Lightning Discharge Therefrom", "Speed Regulation of Prime Movers and Parallel Operation of Alternators", "The Value of the Classics in Engineering Education", "The death of energy and the second law of thermodynamics, with particular reference to the thermodynamics of the atmosphere", "Charles Proteus Steinmetz, the Wizard of Schenectady", "Charles Steinmetz: Union's Electrical Wizard", "Steinmetz, Putting it in Perspective - R, L, and C Elements and the Impedance Concept", Charles Steinmetz: Improvements to Alternating Current Motor, "Steinmetz electric car 1914 - Steinmetz, Charles", "Charles Proteus Steinmetz, Pioneer of Alternating Current", "Technology innovator to headline Steinmetz Memorial Lecture - Union College", "Dr. Charles Proteus Steinmetz memorial lecture series", "Steinmetz Symposium: Celebrating 25 years of student research", "Charles P. Steinmetz Scholarship (Union College-NY) Scholarship Library", "Steinmetz car gets prominent spot at Union College", "Steinmetz Car drives into the spotlight", "American Inventors, September 21, 1983, Smithsonian Postal Museum", "Edison, Steinmetz statues slated for park near Schenectady GE", "The Fine Line between Poetry and Mathematics", "Starling Lawrence Writes a Novel About the Early Days of G.E", "Charles Proteus Steinmetz, The Man Who Either Tamed Lightning, Created Lightning, Neither, or Both", "Charles Steinmetz: Scientist and Socialist (18651923): Including the Complete Steinmetz-Lenin Correspondence", "Book Review: Alternating Current Phenomena", Charles Proteus Steinmetz, the Wizard of Schenectady, Charles Proteus Steinmetz: Accomplishments and Life, Newspaper clippings about Charles Proteus Steinmetz, Dual-rotor permanent magnet induction motor (DRPMIM), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Charles_Proteus_Steinmetz&oldid=1132596786, Members of the Socialist Party of America, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2023, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2022, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from July 2015, Articles with German-language sources (de), Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, At Union College, as chair of electrical engineering from 1902 to 1913, First vice-president of the International Association of Municipal Electricians (IAME) {which later became the, This page was last edited on 9 January 2023, at 16:58. The IEEE Charles Proteus Steinmetz Award is given in his honor. Steinmetz acted in the following professional capacities: He was granted an honorary degree from Harvard University in 1901[20] and a doctorate from Union College in 1903. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". Steinmetz learned that the town had quadrupled in size but the schools had not increased enough in size and there were over 3,000 students who were unable to get an education. But toward the end of Steinmetzs life, according to his biographer, Jonathan Norton Leonard, his scientific work had become rather like a boys playing with machinery. He had by then earned the respect of electrical engineers for his contributions to the field, but Steinmetz, at the peak of his celebrity, simply could not help but delighting in the kind of pseudo-science he would have scorned earlier in his career. If we move in with you, she eventually told him, I must run the house as I see fit.. Back at General Electric, he brought in a gigantic apparatus, then another. Omissions? [26][d] He died on October 26, 1923, and was buried in Vale Cemetery in Schenectady. [14] Hammond, Charles Proteus Steinmetz: A Biography, 296. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. 8-9, (June 1923), 207. [8] Guy Bartlett. Schenectady County Historical Society 32 Washington Ave. Schenectady, NY 12305 518-374-0263 . Hayden, who later married and lived in the house with his wife and children that Charles had built for them. 3 No 21 (April 2, 1910), 175. Where should I start working out out of shape? At the meeting, Eickemeyer introduced Steinmetz to Edison and Edison turned to them and jokingly pointed at Steinmetz and said pure theory, pointed to Eickemeyer and said, theory and practice and then at himself and said pure practice.[34] Over the years Steinmetz and Edison met at various meetings and soon they began a correspondence. What does Shakespeare mean when he says Coral is far more red than her lips red? [3] A genius in both mathematics and electronics, he did work that earned him the nicknames "Forger of Thunderbolts"[4] and "The Wizard of Schenectady". Charles Proteus Steinmetz, original name Karl August Rudolf Steinmetz, (born April 9, 1865, Breslau, Prussiadied Oct. 26, 1923, Schenectady, N.Y., U.S.), German-born American electrical engineer whose ideas on alternating current systems helped inaugurate the electrical era in the United States. Charles Proteus Steinmetz/Cause of death He developed theories for alternating current that made possible the expansion of the electric power industry in the United States. Reporters were awestruck. [2][17] His seminal books and many other AIEE papers "taught a whole generation of engineers how to deal with AC phenomena". Charles P. Steinmetz, AIEE President, 1901 - 1902, worked on inventions for electric motors, generators, and street cars. Steinmetz agreed to all of Corrines terms. This wasnt as much as an all-boys club as you might think as there were several women and many children that would visit regularly, including Ernst and Eskil Bergs sister Julia, Millers sister Florence, a neighbor named Mrs. Krueger who was basically the den mother of this whole mad group and Steinmetzs half-sister Clara who would often stay for long periods until the craziness of the situation became too much when she would escape to her own devices in New York.[6]. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. He systematized the use of complex number phasor representation in electrical engineering education texts, whereby the lower-case letter "j" is used to designate the 90-degree rotation operator in AC system analysis. He founded the Mohawk Aerial Navigation Company, Ltd. Required fields are marked *. Like a mischievous boy, he was fascinated with anything that was lethal, and he gathered alligators, rattlesnakes and black widow spiders. Steinmetz tried to warn us that, We have been a wasteful nation because of our great natural wealthwe have been destroying our forests to get lumber in the most extravagant way. Only four feet tall in real life, his middle name Proteus, was named after the Greek god who could take on any shape or size. [13], When Joseph LeRoy Hayden, a loyal and hardworking lab assistant, announced that he would marry and look for his own living quarters, Steinmetz made the unusual proposal of opening his large home, complete with research lab, greenhouse, and office to the Haydens and their prospective family. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Why was Charles Steinmetz almost turned away from Ellis Island? for more than 30 years charles proteus steinmetz was a leader in the electrical industry, devoting his life to research, largely: relating to mathematical foundations upon which many of the developments in electrical engineering are based; there was scarcely a detail of any branch of electrical science or mathematics with which he was not Rock climbing, skiing, boating, picnics, bicycle rides, they even tried to fly with what they called the Mohawk River Arial Navigation Club, which was Americas first glider club. Gilbert King is a contributing writer in history for Smithsonian.com. Papers include letters, notes clippings . In the fall of 1923, Steinmetz was invited to give a talk at the American Institute of Electrical Engineers in Del Monte, California. Walter Hines Page, Arthur Wilson Page, The Worlds Work: A History of Our Time, Volume 8. Charles Steinmetz was born Karl August Rudolf Steinmetz on April 9, 1865, in Breslau. By then, Edison was nearly deaf, and Steinmetz tapped out a message on Edisons knee in Morse Code. [10] According to Western Electrician (July 12, 1902), vol. In 1893 the newly formed General Electric Company purchased Eickemeyers company, primarily for his patents, but Steinmetz was considered one of its major assets. Steinmetz method of calculation was presented to an uncomprehending audience at the International Electrical Congress in 1893. Nevertheless, I believe that his moniker of Wizard of Schenectady was justified, just not in the way that most people think. He possessed a marvelous insight into all scientific phenomena and an unequaled ability to explain the most difficult and abstruse problems by systematic mathematical methods. He went first to Zurich, then, in 1889 arrived in the United States. As Proteus He Changed His Shape Life, April 23, 1965. Wrocaw Such occurrences were all the more painful for Steinmetz, as it was a family and children that he longed for most in his life. Then, in 1922, Edison decided to break his 30-year moratorium and officially visit GE to see Steinmetzs lightning and get a tour of the facilities. Meanwhile, Steinmetz then decided to build his own house, factory, and conservatory, which were described as a Den of incomprehensible perplexity.[9] Steinmetz also bought a little shack on the side of a river as a vacation spot. When Roy Hayden married a woman named Corrine in 1903, Steinmetz invited the newly married couple to live with him. However, to Steinmetz, working at GE was part of his socialist and environmental beliefs. He was a member of numerous scientific and educational organizations. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Charles Steinmetz: Unions electrical wizard. Union College Magazine, November 1, 1998. Or you can decide to believe, cause why not? He felt that America, has given me everything I wanted the only criticism which I can make is that I would far more enjoy my advantages if I knew that everybody else could enjoy the same. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Charles Proteus Steinmetz (April 9, 1865, - October 26, 1923) was born in Breslau, Prussia (part of Germany at the time) (now known as Wroclaw, Poland). He was put in charge of the research laboratory and began to specialize on magnetic testing. Charles Steinmetz (near center) sitting next to Edwin Houston and in front of T. Commerford Martin, See also: Papers of Charles Proteus Steinmetz. Steinmetz then decided that as he was so often called to look at special problems, GE should form a special consulting department that was composed of the best specialist engineers so that they could swoop down and deal with any emergency. A piece of wire struck by it vanishes in the dust.[33] But Steinmetz wasnt just interested in a big flash. Under the tutelage of his employer, Steinmetz became increasingly absorbed in the practical aspects of electrical engineering. Charles Steinmetz and Thomas Edison each enjoy a cigar as they take a short respite from a tour of the GE plant in 1922. Steinmetz's connection to Union is further celebrated with the annual Steinmetz Symposium,[32] a day-long event in which Union undergraduates give presentations on research they have done. Karl August Rudolf Steinmetz, (born April 9, 1865, Breslau, Prussiadied Oct. 26, 1923, Schenectady, N.Y., U.S.), German-born U.S. electrical engineer. A collector of rare plants, he had it designed with a greenhouse, as well as a laboratory, where he planned to work as much as possible to avoid going into the office. Four different kinds of cryptocurrencies you should know. Steinmetz Name Meaning German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name from Middle High German steinmetze, German Steinmetz stonemason, worker in stone. | READ MORE. In 1893 the newly formed General Electric Company purchased Eickemeyers company, primarily for his patents, but Steinmetz was considered one of its major assets. Steinmetz became close friends with one of lab assistants, a thin, young blond man named Joseph LeRoy Hayden, as they developed the first magnetic arc lamp, later used to light street corners. His contributions to mathematics and electrical engineering made him one of the most beloved and instantly recognizable men of his time. At General Electric, Steinmetz gained an expanded opportunity for research and implementation of his ideas. [30] An additional Charles P. Steinmetz Memorial Scholarship was later established at Union by Marjorie Hayden, daughter of Joseph and Corrine Hayden, and is awarded to students majoring in engineering or physics. A prime example of this phenomenon is lightning, and Steinmetz investigation of lightning phenomena resulted in his theory of traveling waves and opened the way for his development of devices to protect high-power transmission lines from lightning bolts.

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