Did You Know The Very First Movie Ever Made Was In New Jersey

I love to talk about history. I would say history was my favorite (Non-Broadcasting Class) when I was in high school and college. I find it fascinating to learn about historical figures, events, and locations. I just picked up a book this weekend all about Abraham Lincoln. I enjoy U.S. history and if it is New Jersey history then it's a bonus.

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So jump in the Shawn Michaels time machine and travel back 129 years ago this weekend to January 7th, 1894 as we visit West Orange, New Jersey. It was in West Orange that history was made, history that would change the world forever.

It was this weekend nearly 130 years ago that the very first motion picture was copyrighted. According to Wikipedia, "Fred Ott's Sneeze (also known as Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze) is an 1894 short, black-and-white, silent film shot by William K.L. Dickson and featuring Fred Ott. It is the oldest surviving motion picture to be copyrighted, although it is now in the public domain."

It wasn't a long movie and it wasn't a very exciting movie, but it was the very first one copyrighted and it happened right here in New Jersey on January 7th, 1894. You can visit the Thomas Edison National Historic Park in West Orange, New Jersey, and see where the inventions of Edison came to life. There is a fee for entrance to the park.

So there you go, if you love movies and love taking videos yourself, then this is where it all began, and it's right here in New Jersey. Another way that New Jersey changed the world :)