General Electric Co. history

Founded as the Edison Electric Co. by Thomas EDISON in 1878, the company is one of the few American companies to retain its original corporate name, later adopted in 1892. Under Edison’s guidance, the firm developed the incandescent lightbulb before merging with the Thomson-Houston Electric Co. in 1892. For the first 20 years of its life, the company was run by Charles Coffin, a former shoe company executive. Its technological developments were overseen by Charles Steinmetz, its chief electrical engineer, who was responsible for steering the company’s development.

The company then branched out into electric transformers and locomotives, although Edison himself ended his involvement with the company several years after the merger. When Charles Dow initiated his stock market average in 1896, GE was one of the first stocks included. Today it is the only original member remaining in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

During World War I, the company did research work for the U.S. Navy. When the war ended, it was attracted to the market for radios and the nascent broadcasting industry. It manufactured radio receivers and also helped organize an early radio station, WGY, in Schenectady, New York, the home of its research division. GE also produced a wide array of small appliances, which made it a household name with consumers. During World War II, the company produced airplane engines, including the first jet engine produced in the United States.

After the war, the company continued to expand its line of household electronic devices while also moving into more sophisticated areas such as jet propulsion, medical technology, and financial services. In 1981, John WELCH was named head of the company, and he overhauled its operating divisions, adding new ones and cutting others. He also began an aggressive acquisitions program, helping the company to become a successful conglomerate. Among GE’s continued interests were broadcasting (including NBC), appliances, electrical distribution, power systems, medical systems, and INVESTMENT BANKING. GE acquired Kidder Peabody, an investment banking firm, before divesting it in 1995. Many divisions were subsequently sold and others bought in a relentless quest to maintain profitability.

In 1997, GE became the world’s largest company in terms of stock market capitalization. One of its divisions, GE Capital, became one of the country’s largest nonbank financial service companies, offering CREDIT CARDS, insurance, MUTUAL FUNDS, and wholesale lending. General Electric continues as one of the most successful, highly diversified companies into the 21st century.

See also CONGLOMERATES; MORGAN, JOHN PIERPONT.

Further reading

• Carlson, W. Bernard. Innovation as a Social Process. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992. 
• O’Boyle, Thomas F. At Any Cost: Jack Welch, General Electric and the Pursuit of Profit. New York: Knopf, 1998.