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Thomas Edison and Henry Ford among the original snowbirds: The rich going to Florida for the winters

Thomas Edison and Henry Ford developed a friendship in 1914 when Edison welcomed Ford and his family to his residence in Fort Myers, Florida.
Their friendship originated from earlier interactions beginning in 1891, when Ford was employed as an engineer for Edison’s electric utility in Detroit and held great respect for Edison.
Edison built a winter home in Fort Myers in 1886, and Ford purchased the adjacent property in 1916, making southwest Florida their seasonal retreat.
In 1927, Edison, Ford, and Firestone established a research facility in southwest Florida dedicated to evaluating more than 17,000 varieties of rubber-producing plants, aiming to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign rubber supplies disrupted by World War I.
After Edison's death in 1931, his widow deeded the Florida property to Fort Myers for $1 in 1947, leading to its public preservation and eventual nonprofit restoration.

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Thomas Edison and Henry Ford among the original snowbirds: The rich going to Florida for the winters

Thomas Edison and Henry Ford are famous for their innovations in electricity generation and automobiles respectively, but they were also at the forefront of a massively popular trend in Florida: Rich people from up north spending the cold winter months in the Sunshine State.

4 hours ago·United States

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