Internet History: Timeline 1845–1940 (Part 2)

1854

In 1854, construction of the first transatlantic telegraph cable line began. Construction took four years and storage took place on the “Agamemnon” from Great Britain and the “Niagara” from the USA. These boats were financed by the two governments.

Although it was a major event that left an important mark on history, the project quickly failed due to technical problems. It only took three weeks, but it showed that it is possible to achieve something like this.

In 1866 the project was completed and the cables were fully functional. It remained in operation for almost a century.

Source: Netvalley

People Cyrus West Field – Born in Stockbridge, Massachusetts in 1819, Field was an innovative entrepreneur, financier and businessman. He founded the Atlantic Telegraph Company and was interested in introducing new technologies for commercial use. Field died in 1892. Source: Wikipedia Technologies Telegraph cable – The transatlantic telegraph cable was the first cable route to connect America and Europe. This reduced message delivery time from 10 days to about 5 minutes. This project marked the beginning of intercontinental long-distance cables for information transmission. Source: Wikipedia

1876

In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell officially introduced some prototype telephones at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. This was the first World’s Fair in the United States and Bell instantly became a world-famous inventor.

Source: National Museum of American History

People Alexander Graham Bell – born 1847 in Edinburgh, Scotland. His name is famous for patenting and inventing the very first telephone device. Bell was an engineer, scientist and inventor. He was also a co-founder of the AT&T company. Bell died in 1922. Source: Wikipedia Technologies & Companies The phone – Alexander Graham Bell filed the first patent for a telephone device in 1876. It was the first telephone ever to clearly reproduce human voices and allowed two people to have a conversation over a telephone line. Source: Wikipedia

1885

The year the American Telephone and Telegraph Company was founded. AT&T was initially called Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, but when Bell merged with Thomas Sanders and Gardiner Hubbard, they renamed the company.

AT&T is still an active conglomerate and one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world.

Source: ICANNWiki

People Alexander Graham Bell – born 1847 in Edinburgh, Scotland. He is famous for patenting and inventing the very first telephone device. Bell was an engineer, scientist and inventor. He was also a co-founder of the AT&T company. Bell died in 1922. Source: Wikipedia Gardiner Greene Hubbard – born in 1822 in Boston, Massachusetts. He was a financier, lawyer and businessman. He was the first president of AT&T. He was also president of the National Geographic Society and founder of Science magazine. Source: Wikipedia Thomas Sanders – Sanders was a successful businessman who lived in the 19th centuryTh Century. His name is best known as one of the founders of AT&T. Technologies & Companies AT&T Corporation – AT&T began as the Southwestern Bell Telephone Company. In 1885 it became the Telephone and Telegraph Company and later the AT&T Corporation. This company remains one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world, alongside several parent companies.

1892

In 1892, Nikola Tesla created the first radio design. In 1898 he patented a radio-controlled boat. He demonstrated what his patent could achieve at the Electrical Exhibition in Madison Square Garden in 1898.

Source: Tesla company

Nikola Tesla was ahead of his time and he predicted wireless technology. For many, his quote was a mystery until we finally started using wireless technology:

“If wireless communication is used perfectly, the whole earth will be transformed into a giant brain, which is indeed the case, since all things are parts of a real and rhythmic whole.” We will be able to communicate with each other instantly, independently from the distance.”

Source: Business Insider

People Nikola Tesla – Nikola Tesla was born in 1856 in a small Serbian village in the former Austrian Empire. This Serbian mechanical and electrical engineer, physicist and inventor came to America where he could focus on science. He is the inventor of alternating current as we know it today and also contributed to it with various patents. Technologies Wireless, radio-controlled robot boat – Tesla’s radio boat was way ahead of its time. After it showed what it could do in 1898, few people were interested in it. It was only after World War I that scientists began to understand the value of this technology. Source: Wikipedia

1936

In 1936, Alan Turing was the first to describe and set up “Turing machines,” a mathematical model for calculating an abstract machine. It is an important event that led to the exploration of computation and how far it can actually go.

Source: Wikipedia

People Alan Turing – The English mathematician, philosopher, logician and computer scientist born in London in 1912 was one of the most influential scientists of his time. His greatest contributions were to computer science in terms of computer research and laying the foundations for algorithms. Turing died in 1954. Source: Wikipedia Technologies Turing machine – The Turing Machine was the first machine that could simulate algorithms. Although it was very simple, it was the basis of modern calculation. It uses symbols on an infinite band using a table of rules. Source: Wikipedia

1938

The first plan for a logical computer was designed by Konrad Zuse in 1936. It was called the Experimental Model or V1. Production of the V1 began the same year, while the first prototype was released in 1938.

Source: History-computer.com

People Konrad Zuse – born in Berlin in 1910. He was an engineer, computer scientist and inventor. Zuse is known for developing the world’s first programmable computer called the Z3. That’s why he is considered the father of the modern computer. Zuse died in 1995. Source: Wikipedia Technologies Relay computer – These computer systems are based on relay logic and electromechanical relays. This technology replaced mechanical computers and was the forerunner of vacuum tube computers. Sour: WikiChip

1939

1939 is the year the Hewlett-Packard Company was founded. The company’s founders, Bill Hewlett and David Packard, first developed audio oscillators and sold them to Walt Disney. In 1966 the company switched to computer production.

Source: Museum of Computer History

People Bill Hewlett – born 1913 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This American engineer graduated from Stanford University. He is best known as one of the co-founders of the HP company. Hewlett died in 2001. Source: Wikipedia David Packard – born 1912 in Pueblo, Colorado. Packard was an electrical engineer and one of the two co-founders of the HP company. He also served as deputy secretary of defense in the Nixon administration. Packard died in 1996. Source: Wikipedia Technologies & Companies P.S – The Hewlett-Packard Company was founded in 1939. The company developed and produced a wide range of software and hardware as well as computer services for various types of businesses. It is one of the largest information technology companies with a global presence. Source: Wikipedia

1940

George Stibitz first introduced his complex number calculator on January 8, 1940. It was the first “remote job entry”. This technique was a major breakthrough in disseminating information over computer networks and telephones.

Source: History computer

People George Stibitz – born 1904 in York, Pennsylvania. He is considered one of the most important contributors to the invention of the digital computer. Stibitz’s Boolean logic is considered his greatest achievement. Stibitz died in 1995. Source: Wikipedia Technologies K model computer – The K-model computer was developed by George Stibitz while working for Bell Labs. This was the first relay-based calculator to use binary addition for calculations. Source: Wikipedia

To be continued

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