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blue plaque · Newcastle upon Tyne

Sir Joseph Swan FRS

Photograph at the Sir Joseph Swan FRS blue plaque

Sir Joseph Wilson Swan's inventive spirit changed the way we illuminate our world. An English physicist and chemist, he is remembered for his significant contributions to the development of the incandescent light bulb.

Swan's work led to the first widespread use of electric lighting in homes and public spaces. A notable instance was the illumination of London's Savoy Theatre in 1881. His achievements were recognised internationally, including being awarded the Legion of Honour in France and knighted by King Edward VII in England. His legacy endures in the fundamental technology that brightened countless lives.

Original summary by TributeLegacy, informed by public sources.

Source: Open Plaques. Geographic data via OpenStreetMap.

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Data sources

Location records are drawn from open, licence-clean datasets, kept here with attribution and gratitude to the people who maintain them.

  • Open Plaques, dedicated to the public domain (CC0). See openplaques.org.
  • Wikidata, available under the CC0 1.0 Universal dedication.
  • © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database Licence.
  • Historic England, National Heritage List for England, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. War memorial records are drawn from open community datasets (OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, NHLE) - never from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, which is excluded.

Editorial descriptions, photography and tribute links are original TributeLegacy work, layered on top of the open data.

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