Heinrich Göbel

Who was Heinrich Göbel?

Heinrich Göbel, later Henry Goebel, born in Springe, Germany, was a precision mechanic and inventor. He emigrated in 1848 to New York City and lived there until his death. In 1865 he received the American citizenship.

In 1893 the public in the USA and in Europe took notice of Henry Goebel. Magazines and newspapers reported that Henry Goebel had developed incandescent light bulbs comparable to those invented in the year 1879 by Thomas Alva Edison 25 years earlier. Henry Goebel did not apply for a patent.

In 1893 the Edison Electric Light Co. brought suit against three manufacturers of incandescent lamps for infringing Edison´s patent. The defense of these companies claimed the Edison patent was void because of the same invention of Henry Goebel 25 years earlier.

Judges of four courts raised doubts; there was no clear and convincing proof for the claimed invention of Henry Goebel. A research work published in 2007 concluded that the Goebel-Defense was fraudulent.

After the death of Henry Goebel, in some countries, the legend came into being that he was the true inventor of the practical incandescent light bulb.