A History of Grounding and Earthing Practices in the United States: Part 1: A Discussion of How the Earth Has Been Used for Electrical Conduction Through the 1920s

The 270-year history of using the earth as an electrical conductor for man-made electricity is detailed in this article. For the first 140 years of man-made electricity, scientists and engineers used earth, the surface of the terrestrial ball we live on, as a conductor to return the continuous flowing electric current back to the source. Edison realized that using the earth as an electrical conductor presented a health hazard to humans and animals. For a brief quarter of a century, it was not used as a conductor for continuously flowing man-made electricity. In hindsight, one could reach the conclusion that the lack of knowledge of man-made electricity allowed what seemed to be the correct action at the time, but what would later prove to be harmful to the human race and other animals. The fascinating history of using the earth for conducting man-made electricity illuminates a bright future.