“In May 1915, Thomas Edison proposed that the nation should look to science for maintaining national security and wartime superiority. "The Government,'' he said, "should maintain a great research laboratory … In this could be developed … all the technique of military and naval progression without any vast expense." Secretary of the Navy the Honorable Josephus Daniels read the New York Times interview in which Edison suggested the government should establish an innovative research facility and seized the opportunity created by Edison's public comments to enlist Edison's support at the time. Edison agreed to serve as the head of a new body of civilian experts — the Naval Consulting Board — made up of scientists and administrators to evaluate public ideas for innovations. This forged an innovative collaboration between the Navy and academia. The Board's most ambitious plan was the creation of a modern research facility for the Navy. Congress allocated $1.5 million for the institution in 1916, but wartime delays and disagreements within the Naval Consulting Board postponed construction until 1920. The Naval Experimental and Research Laboratory, later shortened to the Naval Research Laboratory circa 1926, was the first modern research institution created within the U.S. Navy. It began operations at 11:00 a.m. on July 2, 1923 and is the U.S. Navy’s first science and technology research facility. The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory continues to honor its historic creation with a bust of Thomas Edison at the entrance to its base in Washington, DC. The sculpture was presented to NRL by the Thomas Alva Edison Foundation,Inc. and unveiled in a ceremony on Dec. 3rd, 1953. In attendance were Secretary of the Navy Dan Kimball, Former Secretary of the Navy and former Governor of New Jersey Charles Edison (son of Thomas Alva Edison), Vice Admiral Harold G. Bowen, USN (Ret.), and former Director of NRL and now Executive Director of the Thomas Alva Edison Foundation, Inc. NRL's bust of Edison was created by Evelyn Beatrice Longman, who was the only sculptor that Thomas Edison posed for and the first woman sculptor to be elected a full member of the National Academy of Design. She received many prizes and awards, including the prestigious Watrous Gold Medal for best sculpture. Ms. Longman was an accomplished sculptor whose work can also be seen on the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. This photograph (230227-N-UI176-1043) was taken by NRL employee Jonathan Steffen in April 2023. Learn more about NRL's history and Centennial here: https://nrl.navy.mil/About-Us/History/NRL-Centennial/”
U.S. Naval Research Laboratory - NRL
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