William Stanley Jr. (November 28, 1858 – May 14, 1916) was an American

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate caus ...

born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. During his career, he obtained 129 patents covering a variety of electric devices. In 1913, he also patented an all-steel vacuum bottle, and formed the Stanley Bottle Company.

Early life

Stanley was born November 28, 1858 in Brooklyn, New York, the son of William Stanley and Elizabeth A. Parsons Stanley. William Jr. attended

Williston Seminary Williston Northampton School (simply referred to as Williston) is a private, co-educational, day and boarding college-preparatory school in Easthampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1841. History Williston Seminary was ...

and later graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

with the class of 1881.

Career

Stanley was as an

electrician An electrician is a tradesperson specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, transmission lines, stationary machines, and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the maintenance ...

working with

tele key Tele may refer to: * Television * Tele (band), a German rock/pop band * Tele Ikuru, Deputy Governor of Rivers State * Télé, Mali, a rural commune of the Cercle of Goundam in the Tombouctou Region of Mali * Telemarketing * Telegraphy * Evening ...

s and

fire alarm A fire alarm system warns people when smoke, fire, carbon monoxide or other fire-related or general notification emergency, emergencies are detected. These alarms may be activated automatically from smoke detectors and heat detectors or may also ...

s of an early manufacturer. In

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, Stanley designed one of the first

electrical installation Electrical wiring is an electrical installation of cabling and associated devices such as switches, distribution boards, sockets, and light fittings in a structure. Wiring is subject to safety standards for design and installation. Allowable ...

s (at a Fifth Avenue store). Shortly thereafter,

George Westinghouse George Westinghouse Jr. (October 6, 1846 – March 12, 1914) was an American entrepreneur and engineer based in Pennsylvania who created the railway air brake and was a pioneer of the electrical industry, receiving his first patent at the age of ...

hired Stanley as his chief engineer at his Pittsburgh factory. In 1885, Stanley built the first practical

alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in whic ...

transformer based on

Lucien Gaulard Lucien Gaulard (16 July 1850 – 26 November 1888) invented devices for the Electricity distribution, transmission of alternating current electrical energy. Biography Gaulard was born in Paris, France in 1850. A power transformer developed by Ga ...

and

John Dixon Gibbs John Dixon Gibbs (1834–1912) was a British engineer and financier who, together with Lucien Gaulard, is often credited as the co-inventor of the AC step-down transformer. The transformer was first demonstrated in 1883 at London's Royal Aquarium ...

' prototype of 1881. This device was the precursor to the modern

transformer A transformer is a passive component that transfers electrical energy from one electrical circuit to another circuit, or multiple circuits. A varying current in any coil of the transformer produces a varying magnetic flux in the transformer' ...

. In December, under a new contract with Westinghouse, Stanley moved his operations to

Great Barrington, Massachusetts Great Barrington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,172 at the 2020 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut, ...

. In 1886, on March 20, Stanley demonstrated the first complete system of high voltage

Alternating Current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in whic ...

transmission, consisting of generators, transformers and high-voltage transmission lines. His system allowed the distribution of electrical power over wide areas. He used the system to light offices and stores along the main street of Great Barrington - the location of his West Avenue family home. Stanley's transformer design became a prototype for future transformers, and his AC distribution system formed the basis of modern electrical power distribution. His work in the electrification of Great Barrington's Main Street was named an IEEE Milestone. Agreeing that the AC system had arrived, Westinghouse further tested the system in summer 1886 in Pittsburgh; it transmitted over a distance of 3 miles, and used an alternator designed by Stanley to replace the Siemens model, which regulated voltage poorly. Satisfied with the pilot system, Westinghouse began commercial production and shipped his company's first commercial to

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, where a local utility placed it in service. Orders for 25 alternating-current plants followed within months. Thomas Parke Hughes
''Networks of Power: Electrification in Western Society, 1880–1930''
pp. 103–104, (1993) In 1890, Stanley founded the Stanley Electric Manufacturing Company in

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

. In 1903 the

General Electric Corporation General Electric Company (GE) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York (state), New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated ...

purchased a controlling interest in the firm. The land on which the company once stood is now the site of the William Stanley Business Park of the Berkshires in Pittsfield.

Patents

William Stanley Jr. was granted 129 patents for a range of products and electrical devices.Owen, E.L., "Rediscovering William Stanley Jr. Part I", ''Industry Applications Magazine'', IEEE, November–December 2003 Volume 9, Issue 6, pp. 9–12 INSPEC 7949020 A selection of patents follow. ''Significant patents are in bold''. Edison 7949430936 a7aee4bddd o

* , Circuit-closer for incandescent lamps * , Electric lamp * , Filament for incandescent electric lamps * , Multiple incandescent electric lamp * , Carbon for incandescent lamps * , Socket for incandescent electric lamp * , Holder for incandescent electric lamp * , Globe for incandescent electric lamp * , Induction coil * , Automatic cut-out for electric-lighting circuits * , Automatic cut-out for electric-lighting circuit * , Incandescent electric lampThis is th
1886 Stanley-Westinghouse Lamp
* , System of electric lighting * * *

Personal life

William married to Lila Courtney (Wetmore) Stanley in 1884. In 1935, their son,

Harold Stanley Harold Stanley (October 2, 1885 – May 14, 1963) was an American businessman and one of the founders of Morgan Stanley in 1935. For 20 years, he ran Morgan Stanley until he left the firm in 1955. Early life Stanley was born in Great Barring ...

, went on to found the modern day financial firm of

Morgan Stanley Morgan Stanley is an American multinational investment management and financial services company headquartered at 1585 Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. With offices in more than 41 countries and more than 75,000 employees, the fir ...

with

J. P. Morgan John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age. As the head of the banking firm that ultimately became known ...

's grandson,

Henry Sturgis Morgan Henry Sturgis Morgan Sr. (October 24, 1900 – February 8, 1982) was an American banker, known for being the co-founder of Morgan Stanley and the president and chairman of the Morgan Library & Museum. Early life and education Morgan was b ...

. William Stanley Jr. died at his home in Great Barrington on May 14, 1916.

References

External links

Alternating Current Development in America by William Stanley

William Stanley Lighted a Town and Powered an Industry by Bernard A. Drew and Gerard Chapman

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20030807192316/http://home.frognet.net/~ejcov/ ejcovbr>William Stanley Jr.

Early History of the A-C System in America

IEEE Legacies William Stanley Jr.
* , 1908. P. 348

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stanley, William Jr. 1858 births 1916 deaths People from Brooklyn Williston Northampton School alumni Yale University alumni American electrical engineers American physicists IEEE Edison Medal recipients Engineers from New York City Scientists from New York (state)