During the 1880's many inventions were coming up because of the industrialization occurring at the time. Some inventions helped out the people but others were just wrong. Some of the inventions that helped at the time was birth of the locomotive, the light bulb, the electric meter and others. One of the worst inventions created at the time was the electric chair.

    Thomas Edison was named the man of the century for his great inventions that helped everyday life. He was of Dutch origin born in February 11 of 1847 some of his most important inventions were the light bulb and phonograph. Edison is one of the most prolific inventors in history. Thomas died on October 18 of 1931 in his home in West Orange, New Jersey. It was said that Edison's last breath is reportedly contained in a test tube at the Henry Ford Museum. A death mask was also made after his death.

Another invention created during the 1880s was the electric chair. Invented because hanging was the number one method for carrying the death penalty but people considered it slow and painful.   The electric chair with AC voltage was chosen for the statewide prison system.

  Some of inventions helped people and some jus took people's lives.

http://inventors.about.com/od/hstartinventions/a/Electric_Chair.htm

wikipedia.org