It is not widely known that Edison had underworld connections whom he solicited to help crush moviola (the nickel movie machines popular in the day) competition. He used thugs and bombs to intimidate others in the nascent movie industry.

Which explains why Hollywood is where it is today. The early movie makers realized they needed to put as much distance between themselves and Edison. Los Angeles and vicinity was the obvious choice. Plenty of sunshine (everything was shot in natural light in those days) and max distance from Edison and his goons.