INVENTORS-3 : Alexander Graham Bell(1847-1922)

Alexander Graham Bell was born on the 3rd March1847 at Edinburg, Scotland.

His father was a celebrated social worker who dedicated his life for the betterment of the poor, needy, and the handicapped both physically and mentally.

His grandfather as well as his father were scientific scholars of the day. Both of them took a great interest on human speech.

It is reported that Bell as a young boy was educated at home by his grandfather, father and their scholarly friends who visited the Edinburgh home very often.

As a young man Bell had his secondary education in the Edinburgh High School. After the completion of education there he got admitted to the University of London. Having taken his first degree from there he went to Germany to follow a post-graduate course. After doing research for few years at the Wurseborg University he received a post-graduate degree with merits.

Soon after Bell returned from Germany, his parents got the opportunity to move to U.S.A. with him. The family settled down in Boston there. When Bell applied to join the academic staff of the Boston University he was successful.
He was offered the post of a lecturer in the Faculty of Special Education which was dedicated to improve the conditions of the handicapped. In few years, he became the professor of the faculty.

All the time Bell was searching and experimenting to find answers for the following very important questions. Could the human voice be transmitted to distant places? How could it be done?

Fortunately a scholarly friend named Watson joined Bell in his quest. Both set up a research centre and launched a chain of experiments and research programme to find the answers.

One day, while engaged in such an experiment bell was in one room and Watson in another about twenty metres away.

While Bell was holding an instrument with one hand the sharp edge of a strip of copper cut his other hand. The hand was bleeding badly.

In his agony Bell called his friend in a weak voice thus: “Mr. Watson please do come here, I want you.”

Within few seconds Watson rushed into the room saying “Here I am, what’s the matter?” “How did you hear me?” Asked Bell a little surprised. “Why Mr. Bell I clearly heard you calling me over the receiver I had in my hand.” Watson replied. Bell was overjoyed. Both presumed that the world’s first telephone message was transmitted quite accidently.

Bell and Watson went ahead with their experiments with increased interest and in 1875, they were able to send a message from their research center in Boston to another center in Cambridge, a town five kilometres away, successfully. They established the renowned Bell Telephone Company (B.T.C) in the year of 1877.

In the two decades that followed a large number of towns and cities in the U.S.A. were inter-connected with the telephone. Companies in U.S.A. set up telephone communications with countries in all the other continents in the next two decades.

In few years Bell became one of the richest people in U.S.A. Yet he did not hoard the money in bank accounts like others. Following his illustrious father, he gave away large amounts of money for charity. He founded the famous ‘American Institute for the Education of the Deaf’ at a cost of millions of dollars.

As an illustrious and respected person loved and admired by all, Alexander Graham Bell spent his last days happy and contented in a town in Nova Scotia, Canada. He passed away on the 2nd August 1922 with peace of mind.