Description

Thomas Edison's wife, Mina Miller Edison, looks away from the camera, holding flowers. Original caption: "International Newsreel Photo Slug (Mrs. Edison). Widow of Inventor Revealed As Financial Wizard. West Orange, N.J.....Mrs. Mina M. Edison, widow of Thomas Alva Edison, who 24 hours after the will of her late husband had been filed for probate, is revealed as not only one of the wealthiest women in the United States, but as the financial genius who piled up a huge fortune for her inventive mate of 46 years. Although not one cent was left her in the will, her wealth is variously estimated at between $25,000,000 and $40,000,000. Its chief source has been 'gifts' bestowed upon her by her husband from the weekly pay checks he drew from the Thomas A. Edison Co. and from the General Film Co. These pay checks, which were turned over to Mrs. Edison for fourteen years, amounted to $25,000 weekly. So wisely did this feminine financial genius invest the money, that today it represents the above-mentioned staggering sum. R-10-30-31."

Used in Boston Herald, November 8 1931, August 25 1947. Original credit line: International News Photos, Inc., 563585.