Chester Thordarson

Who was Chester Thordarson?

Chester Hjortur Thordarson — born Hjörtur Þórðarson — was an Icelandic-American inventor who eventually held nearly a hundred patents. He was instrumental in the development of the modern energy transmission grid with his work in transformers. He achieved his first distinction at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis, where for the Purdue University exhibit he designed and built the first million-volt transformer. For his efforts he won the gold medal from the 1904 World's Fair.