History's Best Selling Tech of 1876

Hats off to 1876! Few tech commanded as much fanfare and nationwide excitement as Telephone. Alongside sensationally popular hits like First Telephone Call and essential classics, consumers eagerly embraced the swell Yankee ingenuity and home-front craftsmanship. Pioneering outfits from industry leaders like Alexander Graham Bell set the standard for quality, producing celebrated items that swept main street from coast to coast as genuine top-flight hits. Browse our definitive retrospective below to rediscover the genuine articles of the era.

1. Telephone

   Released in 1876 by Alexander Graham Bell

   March 7, 1876, stands as a pivotal date in the history of technology and human connection. On this day, the United States Patent Office issued U.S. Patent 174,465 to a 29-year-old inventor named Alexander Graham Bell for his invention described as 'Improvements in Telegraphy.' This patent, often considered the most valuable single patent ever issued, secured Bell's legal claim to the invention of the telephone. The issuance was the culmination of a frantic race against other inventors, most notably Elisha Gray, whose own design was filed just hours after Bell's. While Bell's first successful voice transmission would happen three days later, securing this patent on March 7th provided the legal and commercial foundation for the entire telecommunications industry that would soon follow.

2. First Telephone Call

   Released in 1876 by Alexander Graham Bell

   March 10, 1876, marks the pivotal moment when the telephone transformed from a theoretical concept into a proven reality. In his Boston laboratory, just three days after being awarded U.S. Patent 174,465, Alexander Graham Bell conducted a landmark experiment. Speaking into his new 'liquid transmitter' device, he uttered the now-famous words, 'Mr. Watson—Come here—I want to see you.' His assistant, Thomas Watson, located in an adjoining room, heard the message clearly through the receiver. This event was not a public release but the first successful and unambiguous transmission of articulate speech over a wire, proving the invention's capability and heralding the dawn of the telecommunications age.