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The Invention of the Telephone, Essay Example

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The paper discusses the invention of the telephone and its role in history. The conditions in which the creation of the telephone took place are discussed. The paper evaluates the contribution and influence of the telephone to the economic development and globalization. The aim of the paper is to discuss the evolution of the telephone and the effects of this evolution on society.

The 19 th century was marked with a number of revolutionary inventions, of which the telephone was, probably, the most significant. A complex device that let people transmit voice messages electrically became a revolution communication technologies and the principal driver of the technological progress on the planet. Modern society cannot exist without the telephone. Cellular phones and pocket communication solutions make it easier to contact anyone, at any time and in any part of the globe. Telephone lines turned the world into a complex web of connections. The contribution of the telephone to the economic development and globalization is difficult to underestimate. Today, the telephone is an ever evolving technology, which shows no limits to improvement and can meet the most sophisticated communication needs.

Telephone: Inventing a Revolution

In 1875, when the telegraph was the most sophisticated communication technology in the world, a young professor in a machine shop not far from Scollay Square was desperately trying to launch an unknown machine (Casson, 2007). The machine was actually a combination of crude harmonica, a magnet, a clock-spring reed, and a wire (Casson, 2007). The young man did not notice the heat of the workshop and was completely absorbed by the technical toy too unlike anything every produced in his country (Casson, 2007). Before that crucial day in the middle of 1875, the professor had spent more than three years working on his device; finally, the sound TWANG marked a new stage in the technological and human development (Casson, 2007).

The TWANG sound was the first tiny shout of the newly born telephone (Casson, 2007). “Amidst flying belts and jarring wheels, the baby telephone was born, as feeble and helpless as any other baby, and with no language but a cry” (Casson, 2007, p. 5). The name of the professor was Alexander Graham Bell, and the invention of the telephone forever carved his name into the history of the human technical progress. Bell was the teacher of acoustics and a student in electricity, and worked hard to create a device that would let people transmit voice messages at a distance (Casson, 2007). It should be noted, that no discovery had ever been less accidental than the telephone (Casson, 2007). The invention of the telephone was the result of Bell’s persistent work and deliberate search (Casson, 2007). Bell had known the exact theory of the telephone months before his discovery, and all he had to do was to realize his theory in practice (Casson, 2007). Bell’s only mistake was in underestimating the efficiency of electricity in transmitting speech, but undulatory current generated by a small magnet finally brought Bell to his technical and creative triumph (Casson, 2007).

On March 7, 1876, the U.S. Patent Office granted Bell the most valuable patent ever issued (Coe, 2006). The title of the patent was “Improvement in Telegraphy” and had to secure for its inventor the basic principles of a telephone (Coe, 2006). The first telephone transmission that sounded “Mr. Watson, come here, I want you!” took place on March 10, 1876 and became the starting point in the subsequent chain of bigger and smaller telephone revolutions (Coe, 2006). At that time, the telephone was nothing but a liquid contact transmitter with a needle that dipped into a small cup of water with acid (Coe, 2006). The needle was attached to the diaphragm that made the needle vibrate in accordance with the speech vibrations (Coe, 2006). The vibrating needle changed the resistance of the electric circuit and, as a result, the undulating current needed for the speech transmission to be established (Coe, 2006). The first telephone offered to the public was represented by a single magnetic unit which fulfilled the functions of both the transmitter and the receiver (Coe, 2006). To carry the device from ear to mouth and back was absolutely inconvenient for users. Nevertheless, Bell, more than anyone else, realized the unbelievable potential of the telephone to foster the human progress.

The telephone was invented when telegraph was the dominant player in the telecommunications industry. In 1876, almost 215,000 miles of telegraph wires carried more than 30,000,000 messages through more than 8,000 telegraph offices (Ronell, 1991). At that time, people did not realize that telephony could present them with a unique advantage, combining the speed of telegraph and the human voice instead of traditional cryptic dashes and dots (Ronell, 1991). The first telephone was too radical and too unexpected for the public to immediately grasp its significance. Even the President of Western Union could not fully understand the extraordinary technical possibilities of the telephone (Ronell, 1991). History says that the President of Western Union refused to buy out Bell’s patent for $100,000 and to monopolize the telecommunications industry, because he did not even imagine how they could use that electric toy (Ronell, 1991). Just a century later, the telephone became a universal communication solution, but it took almost a decade for the 19 th century’s society to understand the significance of the invention and to make use of it (Ronell, 1991). Not only did Bell have to invent the telephone, but he faced a difficult task to explain the meaning of his invention to the public and to spread the message that the telephone would change the lives of millions on the planet. People continued to confuse telegraph with the telephone (Ronell, 1991). Bell, however, did not have any doubts about the unbelievable future of his invention. He envisioned miles of telephone lines and cables that would unite private dwellings, shops and country houses, businesses and manufactories into one single web of telephone connections, would allow establishing direct communications between any two parts of the city and would let a man communicate with any other person in a different place (Ronell, 1991).

The Invention of the Telephone: Evolution and Contribution

Many years have passed since the moment Bell made the first telephone call. Today, telephones are dramatically different from the way they used to be a century ago. Bell’s telephone could carry a signal at a distance of 20 miles at most, but the invention of the carbon microphone improved significantly the quality of the transmission (Ronell, 1991). By the end of the 19 th century, the multiplexing technology increased the transmission capacity of the telephone lines, while the development of the switchboard gave AT&T the monopolistic advantage in the telecommunications industry (Ronell, 1991). In 1927, the first radio telephone link was used to create a long distance service between the U.S. and England (Ronell, 1991). Since 1950, microwave stations could process almost 20,000 calls at the same time (Ronell, 1991). 1962 was the beginning of the digital transmission; in 1970, the first fiber optics cable was used instead of copper lines (Ronell, 1991). Modern telephones are more than a device for transmitting voice conversations. Telephones comprise numerous functions, including faxes, modems, and voice conferences. Cellular technology expands mobile telecommunication opportunities. A number of available frequencies are used to ensure that the lines can support all conversations as soon as the telephone is activated (Ronell, 1991).

The contribution of the telephone to globalization and economic development is difficult to underestimate. Hardy (1980) writes that the telephone became the turning point in the rapid economic development for a number of countries. The telephone became one of the primary globalization drivers; rapid improvements in communication technologies foster exchange of ideas and information which contribute to connectivity and create a complex web of relationships between individuals and businesses around the globe. Today, the telephone is an indispensable component of daily routine. Despite its technological sophistication, there is still much room for improvement. The telephone is a technology which shows no limits to technological advancement and will continue to change, to meet the ever growing human needs for better communication.

The telephone became one out of many revolutionary inventions in the 19 th century. However, no other invention and device ever made a contribution to the human technological and economic progress close to that of the telephone. The telephone marked the beginning of the new stage in human evolution. The telephone turned the planet into a complex web of relationships and connections. Today, the telephone much different from the way it looked a century ago. Nevertheless, it is the technology that shows no limits to improvement and will continue to change, to meet the ever growing human needs for better communication.

Casson, H.N. (2007). The history of the telephone. Echo Library.

Coe, L. (2006). The telephone and its several inventors: A history. New York: McFarland.

Hardy, A.P. (1980). The role of the telephone in economic development. Telecommunications  Policy, 4, 4, 278-286.

Ronell, A. (1991). The telephone book: Technology, schizophrenia, electric speech. University of Nebraska Press.

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How the Telephone Was Invented

In the 1870s, Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell independently designed devices that could transmit speech electrically. Both men rushed their respective designs for these prototype telephones to the patent office within hours of each other. Bell patented his telephone first and later emerged the victor in a legal dispute with Gray.

Today, Bell's name is synonymous with the telephone, while Gray is largely forgotten. However, the story of who invented the telephone goes beyond these two men. 

Bell's Biography

Alexander Graham Bell was born on March 3, 1847, in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was immersed in the study of sound from the beginning. His father, uncle, and grandfather were authorities on elocution and speech therapy for the deaf. It was understood that Bell would follow in the family footsteps after finishing college. But after Bell's two other brothers died of tuberculosis, Bell and his parents decided to immigrate to Canada in 1870.

After a brief period of living in Ontario, the Bells moved to Boston where they established speech-therapy practices specializing in teaching deaf children to speak. One of Alexander Graham Bell's pupils was a young Helen Keller, who when they met was not only blind and deaf but also unable to speak.

Although working with the deaf would remain Bell's principal source of income, he continued to pursue his own studies of sound on the side. Bell's unceasing scientific curiosity led to the invention of the photophone , significant commercial improvements in Thomas Edison's phonograph, and to the development of his own flying machine just six years after the Wright Brothers launched their plane at Kitty Hawk. As President James Garfield lay dying of an assassin's bullet in 1881, Bell hurriedly invented a metal detector in an unsuccessful attempt to locate the fatal slug.

From Telegraph to Telephone

The telegraph and telephone are both wire-based electrical systems. Alexander Graham Bell's success with the telephone came as a direct result of his attempts to improve the telegraph. When he began experimenting with electrical signals, the telegraph had been an established means of communication for some 30 years. Although a highly successful system, the telegraph was basically limited to receiving and sending one message at a time.

Bell's extensive knowledge of the nature of sound and his understanding of music enabled him to consider the possibility of transmitting multiple messages over the same wire at the same time. Although the idea of a "multiple telegraph" had been in existence for some time, it was purely conjecture as no one had been able to fabricate one—until Bell. His "harmonic telegraph" was based on the principle that several notes could be sent simultaneously along the same wire if the notes or signals differed in pitch.

Talk With Electricity

By October 1874, Bell's research had progressed to the extent that he could inform his future father-in-law, Boston attorney Gardiner Greene Hubbard, about the possibility of a multiple telegraph. Hubbard, who resented the absolute control then exerted by the Western Union Telegraph Company, instantly saw the potential for breaking such a monopoly and gave Bell the financial backing he needed.

Bell proceeded with his work on the multiple telegraph but did not tell Hubbard that he and Thomas Watson, a young electrician whose services he had enlisted, were also developing a device that would transmit speech electrically. While Watson worked on the harmonic telegraph at the insistent urging of Hubbard and other backers, Bell secretly met in March 1875 with Joseph Henry , the respected director of the Smithsonian Institution, who listened to Bell's ideas for a telephone and offered encouraging words. Spurred on by Henry's positive opinion, Bell and Watson continued their work.

By June 1875, the goal of creating a device that would transmit speech electrically was about to be realized. They had proven that different tones would vary the strength of an electric current in a wire. To achieve success, therefore, they needed only build a working transmitter with a membrane capable of varying electronic currents and a receiver that would reproduce these variations in audible frequencies.

"Mr. Watson, Come Here"

On June 2, 1875, while experimenting with the harmonic telegraph, the men discovered that sound could be transmitted over a wire completely by accident. Watson was trying to loosen a reed that had been wound around a transmitter when he plucked it by accident. The vibration produced by that gesture traveled along the wire into a second device in the other room where Bell was working.

The "twang" Bell heard was all the inspiration that he and Watson needed to accelerate their work. They continued to work into the next year. Bell recounted the critical moment in his journal: "I then shouted into M [the mouthpiece] the following sentence: 'Mr. Watson, come here—I want to see you.' To my delight, he came and declared that he had heard and understood what I said."

The first telephone call had just been made.

The Telephone Network Is Born

Bell patented his device on March 7, 1876, and it quickly began to spread. By 1877, construction of the first regular telephone line from Boston to Somerville, Massachusetts, had been completed. By the end of 1880, there were over 49,000 telephones in the United States.   The following year, telephone service between Boston and Providence, Rhode Island, had been established. Service between New York and Chicago started in 1892 and between New York and Boston in 1894. Transcontinental service began in 1915. 

Bell founded his Bell Telephone Company in 1877. As the industry rapidly expanded, Bell quickly bought out competitors. After a series of mergers, the American Telephone and Telegraph Co.—the forerunner of today's AT&T—was incorporated in 1880. Because Bell controlled the intellectual property and patents behind the telephone system, AT&T had a de facto monopoly over the young industry. It would maintain its control over the U.S. telephone market until 1984 when a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice forced AT&T to end its control over state markets.

Exchanges and Rotary Dialing

The first regular telephone exchange was established in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1878. Early telephones were leased in pairs to subscribers. The subscriber was required to put up his own line to connect with another. In 1889, Kansas City undertaker Almon B. Strowger invented a switch that could connect one line to any of 100 lines by using relays and sliders. The Strowger switch, as it came to be known, was still in use in some telephone offices well over 100 years later.

Strowger was issued a patent on March 11, 1891, for the first automatic telephone exchange. The first exchange using the Strowger switch was opened in La Porte, Indiana, in 1892. Initially, subscribers had a button on their telephone to produce the required number of pulses by tapping. Then an associate of Strowgers' invented the rotary dial in 1896, replacing the button. In 1943, Philadelphia was the last major area to give up dual service (rotary and button).

In 1889, the coin-operated telephone was patented by William Gray of Hartford, Connecticut. Gray's payphone was first installed and used in the Hartford Bank. Unlike pay phones today, users of Gray's phone paid after they had finished their call.

Payphones proliferated along with the Bell System. By the time the first phone booths were installed in 1905, there were about 2.2 million phones; by 1980, there were more than 175 million.   But with the advent of mobile technology, the public demand for payphones rapidly declined, and today there are fewer than 500,000 still operating in the United States.  

Touch-Tone Phones

Researchers at Western Electric, AT&T's manufacturing subsidiary, had experimented with using tones rather than pulses to trigger telephone connections since the early 1940s, but it wasn't until 1963 that dual-tone multifrequency signaling, which uses the same frequency as speech, was commercially viable. AT&T introduced it as Touch-Tone dialing and it quickly became the next standard in telephone technology. By 1990, push-button phones were more common than rotary-dial models in American homes.

Cordless Phones

In the 1970s, the very first cordless phones were introduced. In 1986, the Federal Communications Commission granted the frequency range of 47 to 49 MHz for cordless phones. Granting a greater frequency range allowed cordless phones to have less interference and need less power to run. In 1990, the FCC granted the frequency range of 900 MHz for cordless phones.

In 1994, digital cordless phones were introduced, followed by digital spread spectrum (DSS) in 1995. Both developments were intended to increase the security of cordless phones and decrease unwanted eavesdropping by enabling the phone conversation to be digitally spread out. In 1998, the FCC granted the frequency range of 2.4 GHz for cordless phones; the upward range is now 5.8 GHz.

Cell Phones

The earliest mobile phones were radio-controlled units designed for vehicles. They were expensive and cumbersome, and had extremely limited range. First launched by AT&T in 1946, the network would slowly expand and become more sophisticated, but it never was widely adopted. By 1980, it had been replaced by the first cellular networks.

Research on what would become the cellular phone network used today began in 1947 at Bell Labs, the research wing of AT&T. Although the radio frequencies needed were not yet commercially available, the concept of connecting phones wirelessly through a network of "cells" or transmitters was a viable one. Motorola introduced the first hand-held cellular phone in 1973.

Telephone Books

The first telephone book was published in New Haven, Connecticut, by the New Haven District Telephone Company in February 1878. It was one page long and held 50 names; no numbers were listed, as an operator would connect you. The page was divided into four sections: residential, professional, essential services, and miscellaneous.

In 1886, Reuben H. Donnelly produced the first Yellow Pages-branded directory featuring business names and phone numbers, categorized by the types of products and services provided. By the 1980s, telephone books, whether issued by the Bell System or private publishers, were in nearly every home and business. But with the advent of the Internet and of cell phones, telephone books have been rendered largely obsolete. 

Prior to 1968, there was no dedicated phone number for reaching first responders in the event of an emergency. That changed after a congressional investigation led to calls for the establishment of such a system nationwide. The Federal Communications Commission and AT&T soon announced they would launch their emergency network in Indiana, using the digits 9-1-1 (chosen for its simplicity and for being easy to remember).

But a small independent phone company in rural Alabama decided to beat AT&T at its own game. On Feb. 16, 1968, the first 9-1-1 call was placed in Hayleyville, Alabama, at the office of the Alabama Telephone Company. The 9-1-1 network would be introduced to other cities and towns slowly; it wasn't until 1987 that at least half of all American homes had access to a 9-1-1 emergency network.

Several researchers created devices for identifying the number of incoming calls, including scientists in Brazil, Japan, and Greece, starting in the late 1960s. In the U.S., AT&T first made its trademarked TouchStar caller ID service available in Orlando, Florida, in 1984. Over the next several years, the regional Bell Systems would introduce caller ID services in the Northeast and Southeast. Although the service was initially sold as a pricey added service, caller ID today is a standard function found on every cell phone and available on almost any landline.

Additional Resources

• Casson, Herbert N. The History of the Telephone. Chicago: A.C. McClurg & Co., 1910.

"1870s to 1940s - Telephone." Imagining the Internet: a History and Forecast. Elon University School of Communications.

Kieler, Ashlee. “5 Things We Learned About Pay Phones & Why They Continue To Exist.”   Consumerist , 26 Apr. 2016.

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Short Essay on Telephone [100, 200, 400 Words] With PDF

The telephone is one of the most important gadgets for our modern-day lives. In this lesson today, you will learn how to write short essays on Telephones. So, let’s get started. 

Short Essay on Telephone in 100 Words

The telephone was one of the most important gadgets in our daily life even a decade ago. It is the most essential device to maintain communication between two corners of the world. Around 150 years ago, in 1876, Scottish engineer – scientist Alexander Graham Bell invented the Telephone. With this invention, the contemporary communication industry saw a revolutionary transformation.

Though telecommunication used to be pretty much complicated and costly back then. But with modern scientific advancement Telephones reached almost every urban household of India by the beginning of the 21st century. With more technological advancement telephones became wireless and modernized. Then gradually mobile phones came into the picture by the middle of the first decade of this century and replaced traditional landline telephones. 

Short Essay on Telephone in 200 Words

Even around two decades ago, people could hardly imagine their life without traditional telephones. The telephone was the primary mean of our modern communication. Before the invention of the Telephone, we used to write letters and send telegrams to communicate with our friends and relatives. But the telephone brought the entire world closer to us, making our closed people’s voices audible. The person who made this magic possible is Sir Alexander Graham Bell. The invention of the Telephone paved the way for a revolution in communication. 

With time and scientific advancements, Telephones became much modernised. At the very beginning, it was very difficult to establish telecommunication networks. So making calls was not so easy either. Moreover, the size and design of those first-generation telephones were also less practical. But with the beginning of the 20th century, everything around the Telecommunication industry started changing. By the second half of the century, telephones started using wireless communication network systems. With more scientific advancement in the telecommunication industry, mobile phones came into the picture. 

Telephones have enormous contributions to our lives. Making communication easier this gadget contributes to various industries and creates millions of job opportunities. So, in this modern era without telephones, our life will be nothing but deep into utter darkness. 

Short Essay on Telephone in 400 Words

The word telephone is derived from two different Greek words. One is ‘Tele’ that means far and the next one is ‘phone’ which refers to sound/voice. From the late 19th century the race had begun to make the first machine that could transmit human voice from one place to another. By the mid-1800s’ an Italian inventor named  Antonio Mauci became nearly successful in making such a machine.

He named it a ‘Sound Telegraph’. But in 1876, Scottish engineer Alexander Graham Bell invented the first Tele-talking machine called Telephone. He made the first call in history from one floor to another and talked to his friend. 

Though the first telephone was nothing sort of as we see it today. It was comparatively large in size and there were many kinds of difficulties to be resolved in it. But with time and modern scientific advancement traditional, basic telephones were modernised. From the mid 20th century, engineers started trying to use more advanced technologies to make telephones multi-functional. Gradually the design of telephones became practical and a few additional gadgets were also invented to make telephones a bit smarter.

Compared to the time, no matter how smart the telephone actually became, it still had one basic problem. A person still couldn’t carry a telephone along with him. After long research, engineers of Motorola first created a portable phone in 1973. They named it a Mobile Telephone. This is how the journey of the modern telephone started.

The invention of the mobile telephone revolutionized the telecommunication industry. Gradually with technological advancement and increasing affordability, mobile phones have now completely replaced the traditional telephone. 

India got its first telephone during the ‘British Raj’ on 28th January 1882. The first ‘telephone exchange’ was established in contemporary Calcutta. Three telephone exchange offices were established later in the three main cities of British India. But telephone service was limited to military usage and highly rich people till even the early post-independence period. Only from the last quarter of the 20th-century, the telephone service started being available for common Indian people. Landline telephone reached many urban households till the end of the century. 

The telephone has affected human civilization extensively till after its invention. The world saw extensive usage of telephones for military purposes in two consequent world wars. It helped people to bring the long-distance closer and eliminated the time gap from between. Nowadays, the modern mobile telephone has reached such a stage where it’s being used for almost all purposes. 

So, that was all to write in an essay about Telephones. Hopefully, after going through this lesson, you have understood everything about writing short essays on Telephones and will be able to write such essays yourself.

I have presented the entire context in a very simple language exclusively for your easy understanding. If you still have doubts regarding this session, kindly let me know through the comment section below. To read more such essays on various important topics, keep browsing our website. 

Please join us on Telegram to get the latest updates on our upcoming sessions. Thank you.

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Alexander Graham Bell

By: History.com Editors

Updated: August 25, 2022 | Original: November 9, 2009

Alexander Graham Bell, best known for his invention of the telephone, revolutionized communication as we know it. His interest in sound technology was deep-rooted and personal, as both his wife and mother were deaf. While there’s some controversy over whether Bell was the true pioneer of the telephone, he secured exclusive rights to the technology and launched the Bell Telephone Company in 1877. Ultimately, the talented scientist held more than 18 patents for his inventions and work in communications.

Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh, Scotland , on March 3, 1847. Bell’s father was a professor of speech elocution at the University of Edinburgh and his mother, despite being deaf, was an accomplished pianist.

Young Alexander was an intellectually curious child who studied piano and began inventing things at an early age. Both of his brothers passed away from tuberculosis by the time Bell was in his early twenties.

Initially, Bell’s education consisted of homeschooling. Bell didn’t excel academically, but he was a problem solver from an early age.

When he was just 12, the young Alexander invented a device with rotating paddles and nail brushes that could quickly remove husks from wheat grain to help improve a farming process. At age 16, Bell began studying the mechanics of speech.

He went on to attend Royal High School and the University of Edinburgh. In 1870, Bell, along with his family, moved to Canada. The following year, he settled in the United States.

While in the United States, Bell implemented a system his father developed to teach deaf children called “visible speech”—a set of symbols that represented speech sounds.

In 1872, he opened the School of Vocal Physiology and Mechanics of Speech in Boston , where deaf people were taught to speak. At age 26, the budding inventor became Professor of Vocal Physiology and Elocution at the Boston University School of Oratory, even though he didn’t have a university degree.

While teaching, Bell met Mabel Hubbard, a deaf student. The couple married on July 11, 1877. They went on to have four children, including two sons who died as infants.

When Was the Telephone Invented?

In 1871, Bell started working on the harmonic telegraph — a device that allowed multiple messages to be transmitted over a wire at the same time. While trying to perfect this technology, which was backed by a group of investors, Bell became preoccupied with finding a way to transmit human voice over wires.

By 1875, Bell, with the help of his partner Thomas Watson , had come up with a simple receiver that could turn electricity into sound.

Other scientists, including Antonio Meucci and Elisha Gray , were working on similar technologies, and there’s some debate over who should be credited with the invention of the telephone. It’s said that Bell raced to the patent office to be the first to secure the rights to the discovery.

On March 7, 1876, Bell was granted his telephone patent . A few days later, he made the first-ever telephone call to Watson, allegedly uttering the now-famous phrase, “Mr. Watson, come here. I want you.”

By 1877, the Bell Telephone Company, which today is known as AT&T , was created. In 1915, Bell made the first transcontinental phone call to Watson from New York City to San Francisco .

Did you know? Alexander Graham Bell refused to have a telephone in his study, fearing it would distract him from his scientific work.

Legal Headaches

The inventor faced a nearly 20-year legal battle with other scientists, including Gray and Meucci, who claimed they created telephone prototypes prior to Bell’s patent.

In 1887, the U.S. government moved to withdraw the patent issued to Bell, but after a series of rulings, the Bell company won in a Supreme Court decision. While the Bell Company faced over 550 court challenges, in the end, none were successful.

Inventions and Accomplishments

In addition to the telephone, Bell worked on hundreds of projects throughout his career and received patents in various fields. Some of his other notable inventions were:

• The metal detector: Bell initially came up with this device to locate a bullet inside of assassinated President James A. Garfield .
• Photophone: The photophone allowed transmission of speech on a beam of light.
• Graphophone: This improved version of the phonograph could record and play back sound.
• Audiometer: This gadget was used to detect hearing problems.

In 1880, Bell was awarded the French Volta Prize , and with the money, he founded a facility devoted to scientific discovery, the Volta Laboratory in Washington, D.C.

Bell invented numerous techniques to help teach speech to the deaf and even worked with well-known author and activist Helen Keller . He also helped launch Science magazine , and from 1896 to 1904 served as president of the National Geographic Society .

Quotes by Bell

While Bell is typically known for what he invented, he’s also remembered for what he said and wrote. Some famous quotes attributed to Bell include:

• “When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.”

• “A man's own judgment should be the final appeal in all that relates to himself.”

• “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.”

• “Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to focus.”

• “Great discoveries and improvements invariably involve the cooperation of many minds.”

• “The most successful men in the end are those whose success is the result of steady accretion.”

• “The only difference between success and failure is the ability to take action.”

• “You cannot force ideas. Successful ideas are the result of slow growth.”

• “The inventor looks upon the world and is not contented with things as they are. He wants to improve whatever he sees, he wants to benefit the world; he is haunted by an idea. The spirit of invention possesses him, seeking materialization.”

HISTORY Vault: Alexander Graham Bell: Voice Of Invention

The remarkable story of the man whose driving passion—to enable the deaf to communicate—led to the invention of the telephone.

Death and Legacy

Bell died on August 2, 1922, at the age of 75 in Nova Scotia, Canada. The cause of his death was complications from diabetes. He was survived by his wife and two daughters.

During Bell’s funeral, every phone in North America was silenced to pay tribute to the inventor.

Today, the famous scientist is remembered for his groundbreaking work in sound technology and improving education for the deaf. His best-known invention, the telephone, forever changed the way humans communicate with each other.

Alexander Graham Bell. PBS . History: Alexander Graham Bell. BBC . Alexander Graham Bell. Famous Scientists . Who is credited with inventing the telephone? Library of Congress .

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Home — Essay Samples — Science — Telephone — Invention of Telephone

Invention of Telephone

• Categories: Invention Telephone

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Words: 624 |

Published: Aug 24, 2023

Words: 624 | Page: 1 | 4 min read

Table of contents

Introduction: the birth of a game-changing invention, the journey to invention: alexander graham bell's eureka moment, from theory to reality: the birth of the telephone, impact on communication: bridging distances and connecting lives, societal and economic transformation, challenges and innovations, telephony's continued evolution: from landlines to smartphones, conclusion: the timeless legacy of the telephone.

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