Thomas A. Edison Movies

Filmed on January 1, 1899, this Edison short shows a victory march by General Lee and the Seventh Army Corps. When watching these early films it's...

Shows ice plows in operation, drawn by horses and guided by men on skates. The plows are first operated in one direction and then crosswise, cutting...

A short film in which the members of the Motion Pictures Patents Company (which had been founded only a year earlier) congratulate Thomas Edison...

“This film is remarkable in several respects. In the first place, it is full life-size. Secondly, it is the only accurate recent portrait of...

A six-part documentary recording the 74-year-old Edison's collaborations with his staff, conversations with industrial leaders, and supervision of...

The Passion Play of Oberammergau (1898) presents scenes from the famed Bavarian passion play, dramatizing the final days of Jesus Christ—from...

This film records the arrival of the Governor General of Canada, the Earl of Minto, accompanied by the Countess of Minto and their household, as they...

This short captures the thrill of winter sport in Canada, showing skiers racing downhill at high speed before leaping over a snow-built hurdle. Most...

On February 17, 1913, after many years of R+D, Thomas Alva Edison introduced the Edison Kinetophone to an enthusiastic New York audience. The...

Two cocks fight whilst being watched by two men.

A showcase of trapeze artist Alciede Capitaine, billed as “The Perfect Woman,” whose daring feats on the flying bar combined grace with...

Starting for the Fire (1896), directed by James H. White for the Edison Manufacturing Company, was filmed on location in Newark, New Jersey. The...

Experimental test footage from Edison’s earliest motion picture work, capturing camera trials, exposure studies, and mechanical movement....

This 1894 film depicts a staged “war council” featuring a group of Sioux men in traditional dress, seated in deliberation as Buffalo Bill...

American Falls, from Incline R.R. (1896) is a brief silent actuality directed by James H. White and produced by Thomas A. Edison. Filmed from a...

A comic short in which a tramp attempts to ride a bicycle, tumbling repeatedly before giving up in despair. A skilled rider then takes the stage,...

This Edison short features famed cyclist Neidert performing a series of impressive bicycle stunts on stage, including riding backwards, balancing on...

With a tree-lined river bank dominating the top and back of the frame, the Charles River flows toward a stationary camera. A flotilla of canoes...

Metropolitan Opera stars, tenor Enrico Caruso and bass-baritone Pol Plancon, in a scene from the opera "Lucia di Lammermoor" filmed in Edison...

1897 version of Annabelle Moore performing a serpentine dance.