West Orange in Essex County, New Jersey — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Pattern Shop
Building 3
Photographed by Bill Coughlin, November 6, 2009
1. Pattern Shop Marker
Within this building carpenters shaped wood models, or patterns. From these wooden pieces, Edison and his employees made the parts for working models, specialized machinery, and other devices. The skilled workers in the Pattern Shop and other shops linked the ideas of the laboratory to the mass-production of the factories.
The front of Building 3 once stored chemical supplies. In the Blacksmith Shop (Building 7, to your left) workers forged parts for inventions and laboratory machinery. With his resources at West Orange, Edison claimed he could build anything from a ladys watch to a Locomotive . . . . Inventions that formerly took months & cost a large sum can now be done [in] 2 or 3 days with very little expense.
Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce.
Location. 40° 47.023′ N, 74° 14.01′ W. Marker is in West Orange, New Jersey, in Essex County. It can be reached from Main Street, on the right when traveling north. Marker is located inside Thomas Edison National Historical Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: West Orange NJ 07052, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in New Jersey’s North Jersey, in Greater Newark, and in the New York City Metropolitan Area. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within
this page online
More about this marker. A photograph at the bottom of the marker shows The Pattern Shop staff in 1917.
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Take a tour of the markers found at the Laboratory Complex of Thomas Edison National Historical Park.
Also see . . . Thomas Edison National Historical Park, New Jersey. Nation Park Service website. (Submitted on November 8, 2009, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.)
Photographed by Bill Coughlin, November 6, 2009
2. Marker at the Edison National Historic Site
The Pattern Shop is the building on the right. The Blacksmith Shop, where workers forged parts for inventions and laboratory machinery, is seen in the center rear of this photo.
Photographed by Bill Coughlin, November 6, 2009
3. Building 3
The Pattern Shop marker is seen here on the left of building 3.
Photographed by Bill Coughlin, November 6, 2009
4. Inside the Pattern Shop
Photographed by Bill Coughlin, November 6, 2009
5. Inside the Pattern Shop
Credits. This page was last revised on January 4, 2026. It was originally submitted on November 8, 2009, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 845 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on November 8, 2009, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.
