In 1875, Alexander Graham Bell began work on a device to send multiple telegraph messages over the same wire using harmonics. He did not envision it transmitting voices, but one day he heard a twang and expanded the idea to creation of a “harmonic telegraph”. He hired an electrical designer and mechanic named Thomas Watson to work with him. On Feb. 14, 1876, Bell beat Elisha Gray by a few hours in submitting his patent application. Some historians believe that Gray deserves the title “Father of the Telephone”. There is some evidence that Bell stole ideas from Gray and may have gotten a look at Gray’s patent application by bribing a patent official. But Bell had better lawyers and after years of litigation, he won the battle. Three days after the patent was approved on March 7, Bell and Watson were working in Bell’s home in Boston. Bell spilled some sulfuric acid on his pants and called out “Mr. Watson, come here – I want to see you!” (This was the quote he used in his diary. Watson in his journal had it: “Mr. Watson, come here, I want you.”) The men exchanged places and Watson read some passages from a book to Bell. The darned thing worked! And mankind would never be the same.
https://www.wired.com/2008/03/dayintech-0310/
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/speech-transmitted-by-telephone
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