Early career and education Unsatisfied by classes at
Zanesville High School in 1884, Mershon joined a crew
surveying for a railroad. Working under Mr. Bateman, a surveyor, he gained hands-on experience with a transit and level. Bateman would not answer Mershon's questioning, referring him instead to the
Handbook of Civil Engineering by
John Trautwine. From that point he learned to use reference works. Given that young Merson had an interest in mechanics, a coworker suggested he study at Ohio State. Returning to Zanesville, Mershon turned to
superintendent of schools William D. Lash for examination and certification. Mershon was admitted to Ohio State in the fall of 1886. His skills being evident, in his senior year he served as student assistant. In 1890, he graduated with a degree in
mechanical engineering. After graduation he was an assistant instructor in
electrical engineering. Working with
alternating current machinery, Mershon developed a means of
waveform measurement. It is described as an instantaneous potentiometer method, employing a telephone receiver to indicate balance. This work attracted the attention of the
Westinghouse Electric Company.
Success in electrical power transmission In 1891, Mershon joined the company in
East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he designed
transformers for
electrical power distribution systems. In 1896, he and
Charles F. Scott were sent to
Telluride, Colorado, to carry out experiments on high-voltage transmissions. Their experiments went up to 133,000
volts; they observed
corona discharge along the
transmission lines. The losses were ameliorated with thicker wires and greater separation. To gain experience in the deployment of a
power grid, Mershon took a
leave of absence from Westinghouse to work with Colorado Electric Power in 1897/8. He returned to Westinghouse, serving for a short time in the
New York City office. In 1900 Ralph Mershon became a
consultant in electrical power transmission. He designed and supervised the construction of power systems in various states,
Ontario and
Quebec. From 1905, he consulted with South African firms taking power from
Victoria Falls, and travelled there. From 1912, he consulted on a project at
Inawashiro lake in Japan. He helped place visiting Japanese engineers with American manufacturers and power companies so that the necessary expertise could be acquired. Mershon became a Fellow of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science on January 2, 1906.
Membership of engineering organizations Mershon was a member of the
Engineer's Club in New York City. The
Engineers' Club Building was erected in 1907. In 1910, he was involved in the formation of an "Inventors' Guild" that included
Thomas Edison,
Peter Cooper Hewitt,
Elmer Sperry,
Mihajlo Pupin,
Baekeland, and others. These men were concerned with
patent law, sometimes critically. Mershon was made a Life Member of the Engineers Club on January 26, 1950. Mershon was president of
AIEE in 1912. He is quoted making the wry observation that such posts went to men whose "chief claim to fame arise from activities in fields other than that of electrical engineering as defined by the Institute's constitution". ==Patents and accomplishments==