Following the Death of Nikola Tesla

Nikola Tesla died on January 7, 1943, at the age of 86. He died alone in his room at the New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan, New York. The stated cause as to the death of Tesla was coronary thrombosis.

Tesla’s later years were marked by financial difficulties and allegedly from declining mental health. Despite his significant contributions to science and technology, he spent his final years in relative obscurity and poverty due to having his wealth stolen from him.

After the death of Tesla, his body was discovered by a maid at The New Yorker named Alice Monaghan. She entered his room at the New Yorker Hotel on January 7, 1943, after ignoring the “do not disturb” sign that Tesla had placed on his door two days earlier. She may have been given a hint of what to look for from Tesla in conversations with him.

Following the death of Tesla, his nephew, Sava Kosanović, played a significant role in handling his affairs. While the U.S. government initially seized Tesla’s belongings, including his papers and personal effects, Kosanović eventually managed to have some of these items returned to the family after a legal struggle.

Tesla’s body was taken to the Frank E. Campbell Funeral Home in New York, and a funeral service was held at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City. His remains were later cremated, and the ashes were eventually transported to Belgrade, Serbia, where they are now displayed in a gold-plated sphere on a marble pedestal at the Nikola Tesla Museum.

With the death of Tesla, the U.S. government seized his belongings and papers, fearing that his inventions might fall into enemy hands during World War II. The Office of Alien Property took possession of all his property and documents from his room at the New Yorker Hotel. To this day, we do not know exactly what the government is in possession of, relating to Tesla’s voluminous works.

Three weeks after the death of Tesla, Dr. John G. Trump, an electrical engineer from MIT (and the uncle of former U.S. President Donald Trump), was tasked with evaluating Tesla’s papers. He concluded that Tesla’s work was primarily speculative and did not contain any new, workable principles. This, in and of itself, is a ridiculous statement concerning the works of a man who brought the current civilization reams of patents and inventions. If there had been nothing in Tesla’s works of consequence, why did the government steal them?

In 1952, Tesla’s remaining papers and possessions were released to his nephew, Sava Kosanović, and returned to Belgrade, Yugoslavia. The remaining items are now housed in the Nikola Tesla Museum in Belgrade.