I was a chemist, physicist, and inventor, who is most famous for my important role in the development of electric lighting. I was born in Sunderland, England on October 31, 1828 to John and Isabella Swan. A particularly inquisitive child interested in creative endeavors, I began an apprenticeship with a pharmacist when I was 13. Afterwards, I began as an assistant in a firm of manufacturing chemists, in which I worked my way up, eventually becoming a partner.

obrien, nikolas. "molecular expressions." micro.magnet. micro.magnet, 3/25/2011. Web. 25 Mar 2011. <http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/optics/timeline/people/swan.html>.