geeky
Harrison is often mocked for his fear of the new technology of electricity. He had electricity installed in the White House for the first time by Edison General Electric Company in 1891. He and his wife never touched the light switches himself, for fear of being electrocuted. But while this may seem strange today, this was a reasonable fear for the Harrisons, given how crude household electric wiring could be at the time. Some contend that he and his wife would sometimes sleep with the lights on, but other historians believe that this seems unlikely. Most sources claim that his domestic staff would operate the light switches exclusively.
When electric lighting was installed in the White House in 1891, few people at the time had enough faith in the new technology to use it exclusively. The electrical work at the White House was planned as part of a well-funded project for wiring the State, War & Navy building next door. The Edison company installed a generator for both buildings. The generator was housed in the State, War & Navy's basement, with the wires strung across the lawn and introduced into the White House under the conservatory. The relatively new method of illumination was initially intended to be only a supplement to gaslight. Wires were buried in the plaster, and round switches installed in each room for turning the current on and off. President and Mrs. Harrison refused to operate the switches because they feared being shocked and left the operation of the electric lights to the domestic staff.
The latter part of the 19th century was an exciting time for technological advancements and Harrison was not the Luddite that many portray him to be. Harrison was the earliest president whose voice is known to be preserved. His voice was recorded and kept on a wax phonograph cylinder in 1889 by Gianni Bettini. Here is that recording:
Harrison's embracing of technology wasn't limited to his home. Over the course of his administration, Harrison used technological advances to strengthen his nation's naval power. When he took office there were only two commissioned warships for the Navy. In his inaugural address he said, "construction of a sufficient number of warships and their necessary armaments should progress as rapidly as is consistent with care and perfection." Harrison's Secretary of the Navy Benjamin F. Tracy oversaw the rapid construction of vessels, and within a year congressional approval was obtained for building of the warships Indiana, Texas, Oregon, and Columbia. By 1898, during the term of President William McKinley and with the help of the Carnegie Corporation, ten modern warships, including steel hulls and greater displacements and armaments, had transformed the United States into a legitimate naval power. Seven of these had begun during the Harrison term.
Prior to his Presidency, Harrison had served with courage, bravery and distinction in the Civil War. The mocking stories of his fear of electricity are both exaggerated and understandable in light of the state of electrical safety at the time.