A reader recently wrote me stating that he was, "surprised that Alexander Bell is still credited with the invention of the telephone. The reader goes on to add, "a renowned reference web-site should surely be updated in order to contribute to the gradual correction over time of this historical injustice." Thank you for the compliment. A few historians support Antonio Meucci as being the true inventor of the telephone, however, most historians credit Alexander Graham Bell, and a few support other inventors. For my opinion and for more information on Antonio Meucci and the controversy, please read my new article on Antonio Meucci.A reader recently wrote me stating that he was, "surprised that Alexander Bell is still credited with the invention of the telephone. The reader goes on to add, "a renowned reference web-site should surely be updated in order to contribute to the gradual correction over time of this historical injustice." Thank you for the compliment. A few historians support Antonio Meucci as being the true inventor of the telephone, however, most historians credit Alexander Graham Bell, and a few support other inventors. For my opinion and for more information on Antonio Meucci and the controversy, please read my new article on Antonio Meucci.See More About
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i totally agree with the fact that Meucci is not getting the recognition he deserves in the history books , as well as on this site! if Ms. Bellis did her research she would see that 1. congress would not recognize someone for an invention without doing some sort of research, and 2. Why was Bell’s decision annulled in court in 1876? The Supreme Court even was going after Bell before Meucci died! It is all documented and should be placed on tis website to give the people the chance to decide who was the true inventor!
H. Res. 269
In the House of Representatives, U.S.,
June 11, 2002.
Whereas Antonio Meucci,the great Italian inventor, had a
career that was both extraordinary and tragic;
Whereas,upon immigrating to New York, Meucci continued
to work with ceaseless vigor on a project he had begun
in Havana,Cuba,an invention he later called the
‘‘teletrofono’’, involving electronic communications;
Whereas Meucci set up a rudimentary communication link in
his Staten Island home that connected the basement with
the first floor, and later, when his wife began to suffer
from crippling arthritis, he created a permanent link be-
tween his lab and his wife’s second floor bedroom;
Whereas, having exhausted most of his life ’s savings in pur-
suing his work,Meucci was unable to commercialize his
invention,though he demonstrated his invention in 1860
and had a description of it published in New York ’s
Italian language newspaper;
Whereas Meucci never learned English well enough to navi-
gate the complex American business community;
Whereas Meucci was unable to raise sufficient funds to pay
his way through the patent application process,and thus
had to settle for a caveat,a one year renewable notice of
an impending patent,which was first filed on December
28,1871;
Whereas Meucci later learned that the Western Union affil-
iate laboratory reportedly lost his working models,and
Meucci,who at this point was living on public assistance,
was unable to renew the caveat after 1874;
Whereas in March 1876,Alexander Graham Bell,who con-
ducted experiments in the same laboratory where
Meucci ’s materials had been stored,was granted a patent
and was thereafter credited with inventing the telephone;
Whereas on January 13,1887,the Government of the United
States moved to annul the patent issued to Bell on the
grounds of fraud and misrepresentation,a case that the
Supreme Court found viable and remanded for trial;
Whereas Meucci died in October 1889,the Bell patent ex-
pired in January 1893,and the case was discontinued as
moot without ever reaching the underlying issue of the
true inventor of the telephone entitled to the patent;and
Whereas if Meucci had been able to pay the $10 fee to main-
tain the caveat after 1874,no patent could have been
issued to Bell:Now,therefore,be it
Resolved ,That it is the sense of the House of Represent-
atives that the life and achievements of Antonio Meucci
should be recognized,and his work in the invention of the
telephone should be acknowledged.
Attest:Clerk.
Regardless of who ultimately invented the phone first, Alexander Graham Bell had a remarkable impact in so many ways. I commend to you the article “Alexander Graham Bell: Inventing the Future”: http://bit.ly/9VpXV8
The courts believed fraud had taken place. Meucci died I wonder how?
1847 – Alexander Bell was born
1849 – in Cuba Meucci made electric shocks to treat illness and subsequently made an experiment developing a device through which one could hear inarticulated human voice. He called this device “telegrafo parlante” (lit. “talking telegraph”).
Between 1856 and 1870, Meucci purportedly developed more than 30 different kinds of telephones on the basis of this prototype.
He sent a model and technical details to the Western Union telegraph company but failed to win a meeting with executives. When he asked for his materials to be returned, in 1874, he was told they had been lost. Two years later Bell (intern), who shared a laboratory with Meucci, filed a patent for a telephone, became a celebrity and made a lucrative deal with Western Union.
Meucci did in fact invent the telephone, Bell just patent it.
i am a relative of the meucci family and i know that antonio was the true inventor of the telephone. there is proof in the national archives. thats how i know that he is the true inventor.
The US congress ruled that Meucci was the true inventor of the telephone in 2002, one year before this very article was posted.
Antonio meucci is definitely the true inventor and should at least be remembered for inventing what was at least; close to, the telephone.