Joseph Swan | |
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![]() Photograph of Swan, circa 1900 | |
Born | Joseph Wilson Swan 31 October 1828 |
Died | 27 May 1914 Warlingham, Surrey, England | (aged 85)
Nationality | British |
Known for | Incandescent light bulb Photographic process |
Awards | Hughes Medal (1904) Albert Medal (1906) |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Physics, Chemistry |
Sir Joseph Wilson Swan FRS (31 October 1828 – 27 May 1914) was an English physicist, chemist, and inventor. He is known as an independent early developer of a successful incandescent light bulb, and is the person responsible for developing and supplying the first incandescent lights used to illuminate homes and public buildings, including the Savoy Theatre, London, in 1881.[1][2]
In 1904, Swan was knighted by King Edward VII,[3] awarded the Royal Society's Hughes Medal, and was made an honorary member of the Pharmaceutical Society. He had received the highest decoration in France, the Legion of Honour, when he visited the 1881 International Exposition of Electricity, Paris. The exhibition included displays of his inventions, and the city was lit with his electric lighting.[4]
Swan made groundbreaking discoveries in the fields of electric lighting and photography. He had already received the Legion of Honour when he visited an international exhibition in Paris in 1881. The exhibition included exhibits of his inventions, and the city was lit with electric light, thanks to Swan's invention.