The stream of new inventions in the 1800's captured the imagination of people everywhere. An exhibition displaying the marvels of English inventors became one of the great events of the century. It was held in an huge glass pavilion that was built in 1851 in a London park.Inventors themselves became heroes. The American Thomas Edison, for example, worked for five straight days and nights to perfect his phonograph. He believed hard work was the key to success, and at the age of 70 he said there would be plenty of time to rest at 100. Perhaps the most sensational invention was the airplane. In 1909 Louis Blériot, the first person to fly across the English Channel, was greeted with a French flag raised over the white cliffs of Dover.
