Executioner's Current: Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, and the Invention of the Electric Chair

by Richard D. Moran

The amazing story of how the electric chair developed not out of the desire for a method of execution more humane than hanging but of an effort by one nineteenth century electric company to discredit the other.

In 1882, Thomas Edison launched “the age of electricity” by lighting up a portion of Manhattan with his direct current (DC) system. Six years later George Westinghouse lit up Buffalo with his less expensive alternating current (AC). They quickly became locked in a battle for market share. Richard Moran shows that Edison, in order to maintain commercial dominance, set out to blacken the image of Westinghouse’s AC by persuading the State of New York to electrocute condemned criminals with AC current. Westinghouse, determined to keep AC from becoming known as the “executioner’s current,” fought to stop the first electrocution, claiming that use of the electric chair constituted cruel and unusual punishment. The legal battle that ensued ended when the Supreme Court refused to rule. The electrocution of William Kemler went forward in New York’s Auburn Pen-
itentiary in August 1890—and was horribly botched.

Moran makes clear how this industry tug-of-war raised many profound and disturbing questions, not only about electrocution but about the technological nature of the search for a humane method of execution. And the fundamental question, he says, remains with us Can execution ever be considered humane?

A superbly told tale of industrial and political skullduggery that brings to light a little-known chapter of modern American history.

Genres: History, Science, Nonfiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published October 15, 2002

Reviews

[Allie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horrifying, yet informative. I already kind of disliked Edison, now I rather hate him for his role in the electric chair. I wish that the book went a little more into the electric chair's role in the 20th century, but when a book goes into this much detail you can't make the focus too broad. The illustrations of the electric chairs may make people sitting next to you on the subway nervous.

[Don LaFountaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this to be an interesting book discussing the decision to use electricity as a “painless and more humane” method of executing convicted criminals.

During the last of the 19th century, criminals were executed by hanging them. While this was an accepted practice, many people started to complain that this method was excessively cruel. They felt that unless the executioner was knowledgeable and experienced, the hanging could be botched, causing the criminal’s execution to take 20 – 30 torturous minutes. As bad as this was, it was also a custom for the execution to be carried out in public with the idea that the display would discourage people from committing heinous crimes resulting in execution. Along with deciding that a more humane and less painful way was needed to execute criminals, it was also decided that public displays were not helping to deter criminal activity.

Around the time that the debate of finding a better way to execute criminals started, Thomas Edison brought about the age of electricity when he lit up Manhattan’s financial district with direct current electricity. Being a competitive person, he was not at all pleased when a former colleague, George Westinghouse started lit up Buffalo using alternating current. With competing types of electrical current, the rivalry between the two men became bitter and personal. Westinghouse was saying that his type of electricity was more efficient, while Edison contended that DC electricity was safer than AC. So as the rivalry became more intense, Edison persuaded the leaders of New York to use alternating current to execute criminals. Westinghouse fought back, seeing through Edison’s ploy and concerned that his company would forever be associated with the electric chair.

This is the story of how that played out in the late 19th century. The author discusses in great detail the background of the argument, as it plays out to the first electrocution in history. The person executed was William Kemmler, who was convicted of murdering his live-in lover. His trial and conviction did not take a long time, but his numerous appeals played out for over a year as the various interested parties fought over allowing him to be electrocuted on the new electric chair. Some argued that it would be a more humane as it would be an instantaneous death and that the convicted criminal would not feel anything because the electricity would pass through the body faster and kill him faster than the nerves could register pain. On the other side, the argument was that it was a potentially cruel punishment, and having never been done before, it was also an unusual punishment and therefore was unconstitutional. After all the arguments, William was electrocuted, though unfortunately for William, it was horribly botched.

I really enjoyed this book about the history of the electric chair and electrocution in America. It reads quickly, while staying informative and engrossing. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys American history, as well as late 19th century social science and how heavily it was influenced by businesses.

[Anson Cassel Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

Richard Moran, a sociologist and death-penalty opponent, argues that the electric chair was invented, not to provide a more humane alternative to hanging, but as an attempt by Thomas Edison to gain financial advantage over his business rival George Westinghouse. Even if Moran’s thesis is a bit overstated, his lucid prose reveals corporate machination and biased scientific testimony a plenty. Over much of the book is devoted to the life and death of William Kemmler, the unfortunate who beta-tested the electric chair, as well as blow-by-blow descriptions of all the legal action in his case from jury trial to the refusal of the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that electrocution was “cruel and unusual punishment.”

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was *shocked* that a book about the electric chair was boring. There were interesting parts, such as discussing the crime Kemmler (the first man sentenced to execution by electrocution) committed or why a new form of capital punishment was desired, but most of the book went on and on about what a jerk Edison was or the trials/hearings involved. When I read the line, "By now the testimony had become tiresome and hopelessly repetitive. The court stenographer was probably the only one still listening," my first thought was OKAY BUT YOU'RE GIVING US A VERBATIM PLAY-BY-PLAY, GET TO THE POINT. *My* point is this book could have been a LOT shorter and more interesting if the author had just summarized more.

[Donna · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting story but told in incredible detail. This is perhaps useful for a scholar in this field but if you just want the main story you have to wade through an awful lot of repetition, details such as what 10 different newspapers or journalists reported, numerous differing opinions from committee members or those called to court. I'm not sure who this book was aimed at but it's not really for the general reader.

[AL Rossi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is essentially not so much about the electric chair as it is about how fundamentally unscrupulous Thomas Edison was, what kind of a person cheats an immigrant out of thousands of dollars and laughs in his face? Or electrocutes pets, some stray and some purchased from neighborhood kids, or pits on a public execution of an elephant, or sets out to ruin (and I’m one case succeeds) a competitor? Meet Thomas Edison, the “Wizard of Menlo Park.”

[Bill Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of information on two men that did what they could to control their empires. Makes todays news stories look sad and little compared to the degree these two men went at it.

[Bob Buice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good account of how the electric chair was developed and initiated as an add for Edison's direct current in opposition to Westinghouse's alternating current.

[Kate McDougall Sackler · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept and information about the electric chair and the crime and execution of Kemmler was interesting. The rest was very very dry. It would have benefited from a shuffle of chapters

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

History that not everyone thinks about. Lots about the business of Edison and Westinghouse. History of the electric chair as well as over all law.

[Jeff Koslowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's pretty clear from the start that the author is both anti-Edison and anti-death penalty and unfortunately, this comes through pretty blatantly and gets in the way of honest historical research. It's a quick read but I don't feel it is comprehensive to the subject.

[Cate]

Not sure when I read this...but was thinking about it in conjunction with Severed: A History of Heads Lost and Heads Found and The Thirteenth Turn: A History of the Noose which I read in early 2019