Umair Gaines
The electric chair, a specialised device used for capital punishment through electrocution, was conceived in 1881 by New York dentist Alfred P. Southwick. It was first used for execution in 1890 when William Kemmler, a street pedlar, was electrocuted in New York's Auburn Prison. The electric chair was developed as a more humane alternative to hanging, but its debut caused outrage as two shocks were needed to kill Kemmler. Despite this, the idea was soon adopted across many states.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year of invention | Late 1880s |
| Inventor | Employees at Thomas Alva Edison's works at West Orange, New Jersey |
| First execution | 1890 |
| First person executed | William Kemmler |
| Year of first execution law | 1889 |
| First woman executed | Martha M. Place, 1899 |
| Youngest person executed | George Stinney, 14 years old, 1944 |
| First execution photographed | Ruth Snyder, 1928 |
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What You'll Learn
The electric chair was invented in the late 1880s
The electric chair was conceived by New York dentist Alfred P. Southwick, who began experimenting with animals and modified a dentist's chair. He lobbied for electrocution as a more humane form of capital punishment. In 1886, a commission was set up by the New York State governor, David B. Hill, to investigate a more humane means of execution. The commission contacted electrical experts, including Elihu Thomson and Thomas Edison, who recommended high-voltage AC connected to the head and spine.
The invention of the electric chair was also influenced by the commercial rivalry between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse. Edison wanted to see capital punishment abolished but thought electrocution would be quicker and less painful than hanging. He secretly arranged for a chair to be built, powered by Westinghouse's Alternating Current (AC), to scare people into thinking it was more dangerous. However, Edison's plan backfired, and AC technology was soon recognised as superior to DC.
The first electrical execution law went into effect on January 1, 1889, and the electric chair was first used for execution in 1890. The debut caused outrage, as two shocks were needed to kill William Kemmler. However, the electric chair was soon adopted across many states, becoming a symbol of capital punishment in the United States.
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It was conceived as a more humane alternative to hanging
The electric chair was conceived as a more humane alternative to hanging. Hanging was the usual means of execution in England and was thus nearly universal in the American colonies from the earliest days. The hangman's noose, introduced in the early nineteenth century, was intended for humane purposes, breaking the neck and spinal cord to cause instant unconsciousness and rapid death.
However, by the late 1870s to early 1880s, the spread of arc lighting, which required high voltages, led to numerous accidents that resulted in instantaneous death without leaving a mark. One such incident in Buffalo, New York, in 1881, involved a drunken dock worker named George Lemuel Smith, who sneaked into a power plant and grabbed the brush and ground of an electric dynamo, dying instantly. This incident sparked the idea of using electricity as a means of execution.
New York dentist Alfred P. Southwick conceived of the electric chair as a method of execution in 1881. He lobbied for electrocution as a more humane form of capital punishment and experimented on animals using a modified dentist's chair. Southwick sought advice from inventor Thomas Edison, who recommended high-voltage alternating current (AC) connected to the head and spine. Edison's company championed Direct Current (DC) but wanted to see his competitor George Westinghouse's AC associated with execution.
The electric chair was first used for execution in 1890, ending the life of William Kemmler, a street pedlar who had murdered the woman he lived with. Two shocks were required, causing Kemmler's skin to bleed and his body to singe, leading to outrage. However, the method was soon adopted across many states, becoming a symbol of capital punishment in the United States.
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The first electric execution occurred in 1890
The electric chair was invented in the late 1880s by employees at Thomas Edison's works in West Orange, New Jersey. The first electric execution occurred in 1890 when a street peddler called William Kemmler was executed in New York State's Auburn Prison.
The electric chair was conceived as a more humane alternative to hanging, which was the usual method of execution at the time. In 1886, New York State governor David B. Hill set up a commission to investigate a more humane means of execution, which Edison was involved in. The electric chair was chosen, and the first electric execution was carried out just four years later.
The condemned person was strapped into a wooden chair and electrocuted via electrodes attached to the head and leg. In the case of William Kemmler, the executioner passed a current of 1,000 volts through Kemmler's body for 17 seconds. When this failed to kill him, the current was turned on again at 2,000 volts, causing Kemmler's skin to bleed and his body to singe.
The electric chair's debut caused outrage, and it was soon clear that the method of execution was not as humane as its proponents had hoped. However, the idea was soon adopted across many states, becoming a symbol of capital punishment in the United States.
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The execution method was developed by employees of Thomas Edison
The electric chair was invented in the late 1880s by employees of Thomas Edison's works in West Orange, New Jersey. The invention was the result of a commercial rivalry between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse. Edison, who favoured direct current (DC), wanted to prove that alternating current (AC) was dangerous and hoped that consumers would not want the same type of electrical service in their homes that was used for execution.
In 1888, Edison's research facility hired inventor Harold Brown, who had recently written a letter to the New York Post describing a fatal accident where a young boy died after touching an exposed telegraph wire running on AC current. Brown and his assistant, Doctor Fred Peterson, began designing an electric chair for Edison, experimenting with both DC and AC voltages. Peterson was the head of the government committee selecting the best design for an electric chair, while still on the payroll of the Edison Company.
The electric chair was conceived as a more humane alternative to conventional executions, particularly hanging. In 1886, New York State governor David B. Hill set up a three-member death penalty commission to investigate more humane means of execution. The commission contacted electrical experts, including Thomas Edison, who recommended AC and the use of a Westinghouse generator.
The electric chair was first used for an execution in 1890, when a street pedlar called William Kemmler was put to death at Auburn Prison in New York State. The execution caused outrage, as two shocks were needed to kill Kemmler, but the idea was soon adopted across many states.
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The electric chair has been used in the Philippines and the United States
The electric chair was conceived in 1881 by Alfred P. Southwick, a dentist from Buffalo, New York. It was developed over the next decade as a more humane alternative to hanging. The first use of the electric chair was in 1890 when it was used to execute William Kemmler, a German-American who had murdered the woman he lived with.
The electric chair became a symbol of capital punishment in the United States. It was first adopted by Ohio in 1897, followed by Massachusetts in 1900, New Jersey in 1906, and Virginia in 1908. It soon became the prevalent method of execution in the United States, replacing hanging. Twenty-six states, the District of Columbia, the federal government, and the U.S. military either had death by electrocution on the books or actively executed criminals using this method.
The electric chair remained the most prominent execution method in the United States until the early 1990s, after which it was downgraded to a backup method that an inmate could choose. The last person to be executed by electric chair without the choice of an alternative method was Lynda Lyon Block on May 10, 2002, in Alabama. The most recent execution by electric chair was of Nicholas Todd Sutton on February 20, 2020, in Tennessee.
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Frequently asked questions
The electric chair was invented in the late 1880s.
The electric chair was invented by employees at Thomas Edison's works in West Orange, New Jersey.
The electric chair was invented as a more humane alternative to conventional executions, particularly hanging.
The electric chair was first used for execution in 1890.
