Profile
Alexander Graham Bell: Inventor of the Telephone
Scottish-born scientist and inventor, born in Edinburgh on 3 March 1847
Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh on 3 March 1847. His father and grandfather were experts in elocution, and his mother was deaf.
After moving to Canada and then the United States, he taught at schools for deaf students in Boston. In 1876 he was granted a patent for the telephone, and famously called his assistant, Thomas Watson, using the device.
He co-founded the company that became AT&T and helped found the National Geographic Society. He died in 1922 at his estate in Nova Scotia, Canada.
Career highlights
- 1847Born in Edinburgh
- 1870Emigrates to Canada: with his family
- 1871Teaches deaf students: in Boston
- 1876Telephone patent: and first successful call
- 1877Bell Telephone Company: founded
- 1880Photophone: transmits sound using light
- 1888National Geographic Society: helps found it
- 1919Hydrofoil record: his HD-4 boat sets a world water speed record
- 1922Dies in Nova Scotia: aged 75
Did you know?When he was buried, telephone service across North America was paused for a minute in his honour.