Edison Patents the Phonograph: Recorded Sound Is Born
Edison's phonograph worked by accident. He was trying to improve the telegraph when he noticed his machine made a noise that sounded like speech. So he wrapped tinfoil around a cylinder, rigged up a needle, and shouted "Mary had a little lamb" into it. It played back. His own team didn't believe it would work until they heard it. The patent came through on February 19, 1878. He called it his favorite invention. Within a year, he'd moved on to the light bulb. But this one changed how humans experience time — you could hear the dead.
February 19, 1878
148 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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