Thomas Edison’s incandescent light bulb, patented in 1880, made electric lighting practical, affordable, and long-lasting. It ...

Swan continued to develop his invention and in 1880 his friend William Armstrong's house at Cragside, near Rothbury in Northumberland, was the first private home to be lit by electric light bulbs.

But you are using one of the greatest inventions ever made. The light bulb led to new energy breakthroughs — from power plants and electric transmission lines to home appliances and electric motors.