THE BATTALION
The -pathways of power are
the highways of progress
ted the Electrical
Industry
What Engineering Owes
to the Far-Sightedness
of Qeorge Westinghouse
npHE impregnable position now occupied by alter-
nating current was attained only after a bitter
struggle, for, due to its supposedly deadly character
istics, practically the entire electrical fraternity once
opposed the progress of what was generally referred
to as “Westinghouse Current.”
Gaulard and Gibbs originated the alternating
current system in Europe. Their system was im
practical in many respects, but had been used with
some success for lighting.
George Westinghouse became interested, and im
mediately recognized that the weakness of their
system lay in the design and principles governing
the transformer.
He devoted the resources of his organization to
the development of the transformer. When he made
it a practical unit, alternating current, with its vast
commercial advantages, then became possible.
The beginning of the bitter struggle by George
Westinghouse for the supremacy of alternating
current goes back to 1885 and 1886. Remarkable
progress has been made since then and voltages as
high as 220,000 are in commercial use today.
Engineering owes much to the far-sightedness and
fighting qualities of George Westinghouse.
Westinghouse
ACHIEVEMENT & OPPORTUNITY