1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,960 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:05,240 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey guys, I hope you enjoy these classic 3 00:00:05,280 --> 00:00:08,360 Speaker 1: episodes from the t D I h C Vault. I'm 4 00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:11,440 Speaker 1: currently researching a new crop of stories for next year, 5 00:00:11,560 --> 00:00:14,360 Speaker 1: so be sure to join me on January two when 6 00:00:14,360 --> 00:00:17,520 Speaker 1: we return with all new episodes. Talk to you soon. 7 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:21,480 Speaker 1: Welcome to This Day in History Class from how Stuff 8 00:00:21,480 --> 00:00:23,680 Speaker 1: Works dot Com and from the desk of Stuff You 9 00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:26,160 Speaker 1: Missed in History Class. It's the show where we explore 10 00:00:26,200 --> 00:00:28,319 Speaker 1: the past one day at a time with a quick 11 00:00:28,360 --> 00:00:35,600 Speaker 1: look at what happened today in history. Hello and welcome 12 00:00:35,640 --> 00:00:39,320 Speaker 1: to the podcast. I'm Tracy B. Wilson, and it's December six. 13 00:00:40,120 --> 00:00:43,920 Speaker 1: The Halifax disaster took place on this day in nineteen seventeen. 14 00:00:44,800 --> 00:00:48,000 Speaker 1: With the exception of nuclear explosions, this is one of 15 00:00:48,040 --> 00:00:51,599 Speaker 1: the biggest man made explosions in history and it happened 16 00:00:51,720 --> 00:00:56,960 Speaker 1: when two ships collided in the harbor at Halifax. There 17 00:00:57,000 --> 00:00:59,760 Speaker 1: was a French freighter called the mont Bloc and a 18 00:00:59,840 --> 00:01:04,400 Speaker 1: Norwegian freighter called the Emo. The mont Blanc was carrying 19 00:01:04,520 --> 00:01:07,559 Speaker 1: explosives for the war effort. This was during World War One. 20 00:01:08,360 --> 00:01:10,480 Speaker 1: The Emo was headed to New York to pick up 21 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:13,760 Speaker 1: food to take to Belgium as part of a relief effort, 22 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:17,119 Speaker 1: because there were people in Europe who were frankly starving 23 00:01:17,440 --> 00:01:20,800 Speaker 1: in the wake of World War One. Neither of these 24 00:01:20,800 --> 00:01:25,040 Speaker 1: ships plans to be in the harbor at this particular time. 25 00:01:25,720 --> 00:01:28,600 Speaker 1: There was an anti submarine boom that was being used 26 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:31,640 Speaker 1: at night to try to protect the harbor from German 27 00:01:31,959 --> 00:01:35,480 Speaker 1: U boats, and the EMO had wanted to leave the 28 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:38,120 Speaker 1: day before, but they needed to pick up an order 29 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:40,640 Speaker 1: of coal, and that coal didn't get there until it 30 00:01:40,720 --> 00:01:42,520 Speaker 1: was too late. The boom had already been put in 31 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:45,600 Speaker 1: place they couldn't get out. The mont Blanc was supposed 32 00:01:45,600 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 1: to have arrived on the sixth, but had gotten there 33 00:01:47,880 --> 00:01:50,520 Speaker 1: a little bit ahead of schedule the night before, but 34 00:01:50,840 --> 00:01:53,720 Speaker 1: also too late to get into the harbor. So then 35 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:56,720 Speaker 1: on the morning of the six both ships are trying 36 00:01:56,720 --> 00:02:02,600 Speaker 1: to navigate a very busy, very crowded arrow waterway, and 37 00:02:02,640 --> 00:02:06,440 Speaker 1: they started approaching each other on a collision course. After 38 00:02:06,600 --> 00:02:11,560 Speaker 1: a series of twists and turns and attempts to get 39 00:02:11,560 --> 00:02:16,840 Speaker 1: around other maritime traffic, the EMO hit the mont block 40 00:02:16,960 --> 00:02:21,120 Speaker 1: a little after eight thirty am. When this happened, some 41 00:02:21,160 --> 00:02:24,919 Speaker 1: of the containers aboard the mom Block broke and sparks 42 00:02:24,960 --> 00:02:28,960 Speaker 1: from the collision started a fire, so the mom Block's captain, 43 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:33,880 Speaker 1: knowing what was aboard, ordered everybody to abandon ship. But 44 00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:39,000 Speaker 1: no one else really knew what the mont Block was carrying. Normally, 45 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:41,880 Speaker 1: it would have been flying a flag marking that it 46 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:45,400 Speaker 1: carried munitions, so people would have known there was explosive 47 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:49,520 Speaker 1: material aboard the ship, but that wasn't being flown because 48 00:02:49,520 --> 00:02:52,120 Speaker 1: of the war effort. There were fears that doing that 49 00:02:52,160 --> 00:02:54,840 Speaker 1: would just make the ship a target for a German 50 00:02:54,919 --> 00:02:59,520 Speaker 1: torpedo attack. So when this collision happened on shore, a 51 00:02:59,560 --> 00:03:01,400 Speaker 1: lot of people well stopped what they were doing to 52 00:03:01,560 --> 00:03:06,760 Speaker 1: go watch, which is a pretty normal human behavior. They 53 00:03:06,800 --> 00:03:10,680 Speaker 1: didn't know that there was such dangerous material on one 54 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:13,320 Speaker 1: of the ships. They didn't know they needed to take cover. 55 00:03:13,840 --> 00:03:17,640 Speaker 1: People gathered at windows and all of the buildings around 56 00:03:17,680 --> 00:03:21,079 Speaker 1: the water. They gathered on rooftops, and the few people 57 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:24,400 Speaker 1: who did, for whatever reason, know what was happening or 58 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:27,120 Speaker 1: into it what was happening, they tried to clear the 59 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:28,840 Speaker 1: docks and get people out of the way, but there 60 00:03:28,840 --> 00:03:32,480 Speaker 1: were just too many people, not enough for knowledge of 61 00:03:32,520 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 1: what was about to happen, and at nine oh six 62 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:40,040 Speaker 1: a m. The mom Block exploded. Debris was thrown for 63 00:03:40,200 --> 00:03:44,119 Speaker 1: miles away from the ship. The ship's gun landed five 64 00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:47,320 Speaker 1: and a half kilometers away, and it said the shock 65 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:51,840 Speaker 1: wave from the explosion was felt three hundred kilometers away. 66 00:03:52,640 --> 00:03:57,800 Speaker 1: Hundreds of people instantly died, and all together more than 67 00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:01,040 Speaker 1: two thousand people were killed and nine thousand more were 68 00:04:01,080 --> 00:04:04,880 Speaker 1: injured and needed medical treatment. A lot of the injuries 69 00:04:04,880 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 1: where eye injuries and blindness. Thousands of buildings were also 70 00:04:10,200 --> 00:04:16,240 Speaker 1: damaged in the explosion. A rescue effort started almost immediately, 71 00:04:16,360 --> 00:04:21,040 Speaker 1: but was soon hampered by a blizzard. Naturally, an inquiry 72 00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:24,120 Speaker 1: followed this. It had been a major disaster with a 73 00:04:24,279 --> 00:04:27,440 Speaker 1: huge loss of life, but ultimately it was found that 74 00:04:27,480 --> 00:04:30,000 Speaker 1: the mont Blanc and the Emo were both at fault. 75 00:04:30,839 --> 00:04:33,800 Speaker 1: The City of Boston sent aid to the city of Halifax, 76 00:04:33,839 --> 00:04:37,279 Speaker 1: and in return, Halifax sends a Christmas tree to Boston 77 00:04:37,560 --> 00:04:40,080 Speaker 1: every year, with a lot of pomp and fanfare on 78 00:04:40,160 --> 00:04:43,680 Speaker 1: both ends of the journey. You can learn more about 79 00:04:43,720 --> 00:04:46,800 Speaker 1: this on the December nine eleven episode of Stuff You 80 00:04:46,839 --> 00:04:49,560 Speaker 1: Miss in History Class. Thanks to Casey P. Graham and 81 00:04:49,600 --> 00:04:52,919 Speaker 1: Chandler Mays for their audio work on this show, You 82 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:55,919 Speaker 1: can subscribe to This Day in History Class on Apple Podcasts, 83 00:04:55,920 --> 00:04:58,680 Speaker 1: Google podcast, the I Heart Radio app, and wherever real 84 00:04:58,760 --> 00:05:01,800 Speaker 1: cate your podcasts, and you can tune in tomorrow for 85 00:05:01,839 --> 00:05:11,560 Speaker 1: a date that still does live in infamy. This Day 86 00:05:11,600 --> 00:05:13,640 Speaker 1: in History Class is a production of I Heart Radio. 87 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:18,520 Speaker 1: Hi everyone, I'm Eves. Welcome to This Day in History Class, 88 00:05:18,760 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 1: a podcast for folks who can never have enough history knowledge. 89 00:05:24,800 --> 00:05:37,720 Speaker 1: Today is December six. The day was December six, nineteen twelve. 90 00:05:38,880 --> 00:05:43,320 Speaker 1: A team led by German archaeologist Ludwig Borchard unearthed a 91 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:47,760 Speaker 1: limestone bust of ancient Egyptian queen nefert d. The bust 92 00:05:47,839 --> 00:05:51,919 Speaker 1: has since become an iconic and often copied representation of 93 00:05:52,000 --> 00:05:55,600 Speaker 1: nefer TD. Nefer Td reigned as queen of Egypt in 94 00:05:55,640 --> 00:05:58,960 Speaker 1: the fourteenth century b c. And she was the wife 95 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:01,640 Speaker 1: of the faro Ka not in of the eighteenth dynasty 96 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:05,719 Speaker 1: of Egypt. Borchard and a team of archaeologists from the 97 00:06:05,720 --> 00:06:10,200 Speaker 1: German Oriental Society were excavating at Amarna, a site in Egypt, 98 00:06:10,440 --> 00:06:13,520 Speaker 1: when they unearthed a bust of Nefertidi in the workshop 99 00:06:13,560 --> 00:06:17,640 Speaker 1: of a sculptor named foot Mosa. Borchart described the bus 100 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:19,920 Speaker 1: in his diary but then wrote that there was no 101 00:06:20,080 --> 00:06:22,279 Speaker 1: use in describing the art and that you have to 102 00:06:22,320 --> 00:06:25,880 Speaker 1: see it. The bus is about nineteen inches or forty 103 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:29,159 Speaker 1: eight centimeters tall. It's made of limestone and coated with 104 00:06:29,240 --> 00:06:33,520 Speaker 1: layers of painted stucco. Nefertidi is wearing a tall, flat 105 00:06:33,560 --> 00:06:36,960 Speaker 1: topped blue crown with a golden dietem band wrapped around 106 00:06:37,040 --> 00:06:40,080 Speaker 1: it and a broken ureus or cobra in the front. 107 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:43,800 Speaker 1: She is also wearing a patterned collar, and the pupil 108 00:06:43,839 --> 00:06:46,159 Speaker 1: of her right eye is made of quartz that's painted black. 109 00:06:46,560 --> 00:06:49,480 Speaker 1: Her left eye does not have the same crystal inlay. 110 00:06:50,160 --> 00:06:53,920 Speaker 1: In January of nineteen thirteen, the excavation finds from Amarna 111 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:58,640 Speaker 1: were divided into two lists. Gustav Lefevo, inspector of the 112 00:06:58,640 --> 00:07:01,920 Speaker 1: Egyptian Antiquity Serve, did not take the list that had 113 00:07:01,960 --> 00:07:05,560 Speaker 1: Neffertidis bust on it. Nefertidi, as well as other bus 114 00:07:05,600 --> 00:07:09,680 Speaker 1: were awarded to Berlin. The artifacts came under the possession 115 00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:13,240 Speaker 1: of philanthropists James Simon, co founder and treasurer of the 116 00:07:13,280 --> 00:07:18,440 Speaker 1: German Oriental Society and founder of the Amarna excavations. Simon 117 00:07:18,480 --> 00:07:20,600 Speaker 1: donated the works he had from Amarna to the new 118 00:07:20,680 --> 00:07:24,400 Speaker 1: museum in Berlin, and ownership of the artifacts was transferred 119 00:07:24,440 --> 00:07:27,560 Speaker 1: to the State of Prussia. Though many finds from the 120 00:07:27,560 --> 00:07:31,240 Speaker 1: Amarna excavation were put on display, the Nefertidi Bust was 121 00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:34,280 Speaker 1: not shown to the public until an exhibition in Berlin 122 00:07:34,360 --> 00:07:38,720 Speaker 1: in nineteen twenty four. During World War Two, the Nazis 123 00:07:38,800 --> 00:07:41,960 Speaker 1: moved the bust for safekeeping, but after the war the 124 00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:46,119 Speaker 1: bus was displayed in West Berlin. In nineteen fifty seven, 125 00:07:46,400 --> 00:07:49,560 Speaker 1: a decade after the State of Prussia dissolved, the Prussian 126 00:07:49,680 --> 00:07:55,440 Speaker 1: Cultural Heritage Foundation became the legal owner of the Nefertidi Bust. Today, 127 00:07:55,480 --> 00:07:57,960 Speaker 1: the sculpture is part of the Egyptian Museum of Berlin 128 00:07:58,040 --> 00:08:01,640 Speaker 1: collection and it's on display at the new museum. But 129 00:08:01,800 --> 00:08:03,960 Speaker 1: Egypt has been calling for the return of the bust 130 00:08:04,080 --> 00:08:09,760 Speaker 1: since nine. Pierre Leco, director of the Egyptian Antiquity Service, 131 00:08:10,120 --> 00:08:15,640 Speaker 1: requested its repatriation that year. Dr Zahi Hawas, former Secretary 132 00:08:15,680 --> 00:08:19,640 Speaker 1: General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, believes the 133 00:08:19,680 --> 00:08:22,840 Speaker 1: bust was taken from Egypt illegally and has called for 134 00:08:22,880 --> 00:08:25,920 Speaker 1: the return of antiquities taken out of Egypt during the 135 00:08:25,960 --> 00:08:31,920 Speaker 1: colonial era. Despite Egyptian authorities, persistent attempts to reclaim Nefertidis bust, 136 00:08:32,360 --> 00:08:36,719 Speaker 1: and some German recognition of concern surrounding ethics and appropriation. 137 00:08:37,240 --> 00:08:41,440 Speaker 1: The Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation still claims ownership of the bust. 138 00:08:42,559 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 1: Swiss art historian On re steer Land and historian Air 139 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:49,000 Speaker 1: Devar and Air Juan have both claimed that the bus 140 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:52,439 Speaker 1: is a fake, but those claims have been dismissed as 141 00:08:52,480 --> 00:08:58,400 Speaker 1: publicity stunts since scientific analysis has verified its authenticity. I'm 142 00:08:58,440 --> 00:09:00,800 Speaker 1: Eve Jeff Coote and hopefully you know a little more 143 00:09:00,800 --> 00:09:04,840 Speaker 1: about history today than you did yesterday. You can find 144 00:09:04,920 --> 00:09:09,080 Speaker 1: us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at t d I 145 00:09:09,559 --> 00:09:14,959 Speaker 1: h C podcast. We also accept electronic letters at this 146 00:09:15,080 --> 00:09:19,520 Speaker 1: Day at I heart media dot com. Thanks again for listening, 147 00:09:19,600 --> 00:09:22,720 Speaker 1: and have a fantastic twenty four hours until we see 148 00:09:22,720 --> 00:09:34,840 Speaker 1: you again. For more podcasts from I Heart Radio, visit 149 00:09:34,880 --> 00:09:37,520 Speaker 1: the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen 150 00:09:37,559 --> 00:09:39,719 Speaker 1: to your favorite shows. This Day in History Class is 151 00:09:39,720 --> 00:09:47,680 Speaker 1: a production of I Heart Radio. Hello and welcome to 152 00:09:47,720 --> 00:09:51,079 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class, a show that believes there's 153 00:09:51,120 --> 00:09:54,000 Speaker 1: no time like the present to learn about the past. 154 00:09:55,040 --> 00:09:58,600 Speaker 1: I'm Gabe Louisier, and today we're looking at the time 155 00:09:58,600 --> 00:10:02,720 Speaker 1: when Tomas Edison invented away to record and play back 156 00:10:02,840 --> 00:10:06,440 Speaker 1: his own voice, thus paving the way for the entire 157 00:10:06,600 --> 00:10:20,400 Speaker 1: podcast industry. The day was December sixth, eighteen seventy seven. 158 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:25,200 Speaker 1: At his lab in Menlo Park, New Jersey, inventor Thomas 159 00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:29,520 Speaker 1: Edison made the first recording on his newly completed phonograph 160 00:10:30,440 --> 00:10:34,400 Speaker 1: when his aid John Crucy had put the finishing touches 161 00:10:34,480 --> 00:10:38,360 Speaker 1: on the machine. Edison christened it by reciting the eighteen 162 00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:43,040 Speaker 1: thirty nursery rhyme Mary had a Little Lamb. The poem 163 00:10:43,120 --> 00:10:46,320 Speaker 1: was probably on his mind since at the time his 164 00:10:46,440 --> 00:10:50,040 Speaker 1: daughter Marian was four years old and his eldest son 165 00:10:50,320 --> 00:10:55,720 Speaker 1: was almost two. Edison's original recording no longer exists, but 166 00:10:55,840 --> 00:11:00,000 Speaker 1: the inventor actually recreated it for the Inventions fiftieth Anniverse. 167 00:11:00,040 --> 00:11:07,479 Speaker 1: Sree in take a listen. First first spoken the little phonograph, 168 00:11:08,360 --> 00:11:12,360 Speaker 1: A little feature practical poetry. Now he had a little 169 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:17,120 Speaker 1: savage batol, And everywhere that Mary went to man would shot. 170 00:11:18,760 --> 00:11:21,840 Speaker 1: Thomas Edison is best remembered for his invention of the 171 00:11:21,880 --> 00:11:25,760 Speaker 1: electric light bulb, but his first brush with fame was 172 00:11:25,840 --> 00:11:30,080 Speaker 1: two years earlier when he debuted the phonograph. A marvel 173 00:11:30,160 --> 00:11:32,880 Speaker 1: at the time, it was the first instrument that could 174 00:11:32,920 --> 00:11:37,640 Speaker 1: both record sound and reproduce it. Edison came up with 175 00:11:37,679 --> 00:11:41,040 Speaker 1: the idea of the phonograph by chance while working on 176 00:11:41,120 --> 00:11:45,360 Speaker 1: improvements to the telegraph. He had recently found success in 177 00:11:45,400 --> 00:11:48,960 Speaker 1: the business market with a machine that could record telegraph 178 00:11:49,000 --> 00:11:53,199 Speaker 1: transmissions so that they could be decoded later. That way, 179 00:11:53,360 --> 00:11:56,920 Speaker 1: an operator could step away from the telegraph without fear 180 00:11:56,960 --> 00:12:00,480 Speaker 1: of missing an incoming message. It was like an early 181 00:12:00,640 --> 00:12:04,760 Speaker 1: version of the answering machine, except instead of recording sound 182 00:12:04,840 --> 00:12:09,000 Speaker 1: onto tape, it recorded dots and dashes by embossing them 183 00:12:09,000 --> 00:12:13,640 Speaker 1: onto paper. It was this general concept of recording that 184 00:12:13,760 --> 00:12:16,400 Speaker 1: led Edison to wonder if the same could be done 185 00:12:16,440 --> 00:12:21,160 Speaker 1: with sound itself. The recording of sound wasn't actually a 186 00:12:21,240 --> 00:12:25,480 Speaker 1: challenge other inventors that had already devised ways to record 187 00:12:25,559 --> 00:12:31,240 Speaker 1: sounds as written notation, similar to Edison's telegraph equipment. However, 188 00:12:31,640 --> 00:12:35,280 Speaker 1: playing back the recorded sound as something you could actually 189 00:12:35,400 --> 00:12:40,280 Speaker 1: hear that hadn't been done before. Edison typically took a 190 00:12:40,360 --> 00:12:44,280 Speaker 1: business like approach to his inventions, rarely making a move 191 00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:49,360 Speaker 1: without extensive planning and a clear practical end in mind. However, 192 00:12:49,679 --> 00:12:52,640 Speaker 1: he made an exception for his efforts to record and 193 00:12:52,720 --> 00:12:57,800 Speaker 1: playback sound, and in the end that meandering approach paid off, 194 00:12:58,559 --> 00:13:03,000 Speaker 1: as Edison reflected years later, quote, when I have fully 195 00:13:03,040 --> 00:13:06,280 Speaker 1: decided that a result is worth getting, I go about 196 00:13:06,320 --> 00:13:10,280 Speaker 1: it and make trial after trial until it comes. I 197 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:14,280 Speaker 1: never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any 198 00:13:14,320 --> 00:13:20,280 Speaker 1: of my inventions come indirectly through accident, except the phonograph. 199 00:13:20,480 --> 00:13:24,439 Speaker 1: He began experimenting in the summer of eighteen seventy seven. 200 00:13:25,080 --> 00:13:28,199 Speaker 1: The first step was figuring out how to record sound 201 00:13:28,280 --> 00:13:31,080 Speaker 1: in such a way that it could be reproduced. Later, 202 00:13:32,160 --> 00:13:35,640 Speaker 1: Edison hit upon the idea of a diaphragm attached to 203 00:13:35,679 --> 00:13:40,559 Speaker 1: an embossing needle. When sound waves caused the diaphragm to vibrate, 204 00:13:40,840 --> 00:13:43,720 Speaker 1: the needle would etch its movements onto a piece of 205 00:13:43,800 --> 00:13:48,000 Speaker 1: wax paper to make a recording. With help from his assistance, 206 00:13:48,400 --> 00:13:51,920 Speaker 1: Edison whipped up a prototype and was satisfied with the result, 207 00:13:52,360 --> 00:13:56,680 Speaker 1: noting that quote, the vibrations are indented nicely, and there 208 00:13:56,800 --> 00:13:58,880 Speaker 1: is no doubt that I shall be able to store 209 00:13:58,960 --> 00:14:02,280 Speaker 1: up and reproduce us at any future time. The human 210 00:14:02,400 --> 00:14:07,880 Speaker 1: voice perfectly by August Edison had dubbed his new invention 211 00:14:08,200 --> 00:14:12,000 Speaker 1: the phonograph. For the next several months, he and his 212 00:14:12,120 --> 00:14:15,600 Speaker 1: crew shifted their focus to the next part of the problem, 213 00:14:15,640 --> 00:14:19,440 Speaker 1: finding the right recording medium that would actually play back 214 00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:24,520 Speaker 1: audible sound. Edison's notes show that a host of options 215 00:14:24,520 --> 00:14:28,120 Speaker 1: were considered, some of which were actually built as prototypes. 216 00:14:29,080 --> 00:14:32,560 Speaker 1: By late November, they had settled on using a rotating 217 00:14:32,600 --> 00:14:37,680 Speaker 1: brass cylinder wrapped with tinfoil. The recording process was done 218 00:14:37,680 --> 00:14:40,680 Speaker 1: through a piece of a telephone called a repeater, which 219 00:14:40,680 --> 00:14:44,280 Speaker 1: acted as a microphone. The sound waves of a person's 220 00:14:44,400 --> 00:14:48,080 Speaker 1: voice would be recorded as grooves which a needle would 221 00:14:48,160 --> 00:14:52,320 Speaker 1: scratch into the foil wrapped cylinder. Then to play back 222 00:14:52,400 --> 00:14:55,920 Speaker 1: the sound, the needle would vibrate as it retraced the 223 00:14:55,960 --> 00:15:00,480 Speaker 1: grooves of the recorded sound waves. The workman asked with 224 00:15:00,560 --> 00:15:04,480 Speaker 1: completing the prototype was John Crucy, but he didn't have 225 00:15:04,600 --> 00:15:07,760 Speaker 1: much faith that the machine would work, and to be fair, 226 00:15:08,280 --> 00:15:11,480 Speaker 1: Edison didn't either, but there was only one way to 227 00:15:11,560 --> 00:15:16,200 Speaker 1: find out. On December six, the phonograph was finally ready 228 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:20,280 Speaker 1: to be tested. Edison described the moment of truth, writing 229 00:15:20,480 --> 00:15:24,440 Speaker 1: quote it was finished, the foil was put on. I 230 00:15:24,520 --> 00:15:28,160 Speaker 1: then shouted Mary had a little lamb et cetera. I 231 00:15:28,200 --> 00:15:32,920 Speaker 1: adjusted the reproducer, and the machine reproduced it perfectly. I 232 00:15:32,960 --> 00:15:37,520 Speaker 1: was never so taken aback in my life. Everybody was astonished. 233 00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:41,120 Speaker 1: I was always afraid of things that worked the first time. 234 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:46,160 Speaker 1: Long experience proved that there were great drawbacks found generally 235 00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:49,920 Speaker 1: before they could be got commercial. But here was something 236 00:15:49,960 --> 00:15:54,480 Speaker 1: there was no doubt of. The very next day, Edison 237 00:15:54,560 --> 00:15:58,600 Speaker 1: paid an unannounced visit to the editors of Scientific American 238 00:15:58,680 --> 00:16:02,960 Speaker 1: magazine in New York. Work. There he gave a demonstration 239 00:16:03,040 --> 00:16:06,360 Speaker 1: of his new invention, and the spectators were just as 240 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:09,480 Speaker 1: astonished to see it worked as the inventor had been. 241 00:16:10,280 --> 00:16:15,280 Speaker 1: The publication later recounted the event, saying, quote, Mr Thomas A. 242 00:16:15,760 --> 00:16:19,720 Speaker 1: Edison recently came into this office and placed before the 243 00:16:19,840 --> 00:16:24,600 Speaker 1: editors a small, simple machine, about which very few preliminary 244 00:16:24,680 --> 00:16:29,920 Speaker 1: remarks were offered. The visitor, without any ceremony whatever, turned 245 00:16:29,960 --> 00:16:33,480 Speaker 1: the crank, and, to the astonishment of all present, the 246 00:16:33,600 --> 00:16:37,720 Speaker 1: machine said, good morning, how do you do? How do 247 00:16:37,800 --> 00:16:42,120 Speaker 1: you like the phonograph? The machine thus spoke for itself 248 00:16:42,400 --> 00:16:45,800 Speaker 1: and made known the fact that it was the phonograph. 249 00:16:46,040 --> 00:16:50,400 Speaker 1: These remarks were not only perfectly audible to ourselves, but 250 00:16:50,520 --> 00:16:53,960 Speaker 1: to a dozen or more persons gathered around, and they 251 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:57,640 Speaker 1: were produced by the aid of no other mechanism than 252 00:16:57,680 --> 00:17:03,720 Speaker 1: the simple little contrivance. With a working prototype and successful demonstration, 253 00:17:04,320 --> 00:17:07,520 Speaker 1: Edison filed for a patent on the phonograph in late 254 00:17:07,560 --> 00:17:11,240 Speaker 1: eighteen seventy seven and received it in February of the 255 00:17:11,280 --> 00:17:15,480 Speaker 1: next year. Interestingly, when he began to market the machine, 256 00:17:15,840 --> 00:17:20,240 Speaker 1: he presented it primarily as an office tool for dictating letters. 257 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:24,040 Speaker 1: He also envisioned it as an alternative to the recently 258 00:17:24,080 --> 00:17:27,760 Speaker 1: invented telephone, which was still too expensive for most people 259 00:17:27,800 --> 00:17:31,359 Speaker 1: to own. The idea was that people could go to 260 00:17:31,440 --> 00:17:35,280 Speaker 1: a store, record a message on a phonographic tube, and 261 00:17:35,320 --> 00:17:37,879 Speaker 1: then mail it to a friend or relative to be 262 00:17:37,960 --> 00:17:41,320 Speaker 1: played back on a different machine. It wouldn't have been 263 00:17:41,359 --> 00:17:45,159 Speaker 1: as fast or convenient as simply calling someone up, but 264 00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:48,800 Speaker 1: it would provide a permanent recording that could be replayed 265 00:17:48,840 --> 00:17:52,560 Speaker 1: as many times as you wanted. A little further down 266 00:17:52,680 --> 00:17:56,840 Speaker 1: on Edison's list of potential uses was the recording of music. 267 00:17:57,520 --> 00:18:00,439 Speaker 1: He got a little sidetracked by the light ball, but 268 00:18:00,480 --> 00:18:03,840 Speaker 1: he eventually made his way into the music business. In 269 00:18:04,000 --> 00:18:09,640 Speaker 1: eight Edison released what he called the perfected phonograph. This 270 00:18:09,800 --> 00:18:14,280 Speaker 1: new and improved model used recordings etched onto wax cylinders 271 00:18:14,520 --> 00:18:18,200 Speaker 1: instead of the old brass and foil ones. The change 272 00:18:18,240 --> 00:18:22,280 Speaker 1: improved sound quality and reduced wear and tear during playback. 273 00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:26,640 Speaker 1: The earliest of these cylinders could only hold about two 274 00:18:26,680 --> 00:18:31,280 Speaker 1: minutes of content, but that was long enough. Edison started 275 00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:36,119 Speaker 1: selling recordings of music and recitations of speeches and poems, 276 00:18:36,640 --> 00:18:40,959 Speaker 1: is essentially starting the world's first record company. Of course, 277 00:18:41,280 --> 00:18:46,840 Speaker 1: it wasn't long before competitors began producing their own cylinders. Gradually, 278 00:18:47,000 --> 00:18:50,600 Speaker 1: this competition led to further innovation, such as being able 279 00:18:50,640 --> 00:18:55,119 Speaker 1: to make recordings longer than two minutes. Another limitation of 280 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:58,199 Speaker 1: using wax cylinders was that each one had to be 281 00:18:58,240 --> 00:19:03,359 Speaker 1: recorded from live music. That made mass production difficult, as 282 00:19:03,400 --> 00:19:06,560 Speaker 1: there was no way to scale the recording process beyond 283 00:19:06,600 --> 00:19:09,600 Speaker 1: the number of phonographs you could fit into a room 284 00:19:09,600 --> 00:19:14,240 Speaker 1: with a musician. That ultimately changed when the recording industry 285 00:19:14,320 --> 00:19:17,679 Speaker 1: switched over to disks, which could be stamped to create 286 00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:22,120 Speaker 1: as many copies as needed. As for Edison, his company 287 00:19:22,200 --> 00:19:25,800 Speaker 1: also ditched the cylinders and remained profitable well into the 288 00:19:25,880 --> 00:19:30,919 Speaker 1: nineteen twenties. However, before the decade was out, the radio 289 00:19:31,080 --> 00:19:34,439 Speaker 1: made its debut, and Edison saw the writing on the wall. 290 00:19:35,240 --> 00:19:38,720 Speaker 1: He shut down his recording company in nineteen twenty nine 291 00:19:39,160 --> 00:19:42,720 Speaker 1: and stepped away from the industry he himself had invented. 292 00:19:43,680 --> 00:19:47,960 Speaker 1: Edison's cylinders may have been supplanted by disks, which have 293 00:19:48,119 --> 00:19:52,360 Speaker 1: themselves given way to digital files, but each new medium 294 00:19:52,480 --> 00:19:56,639 Speaker 1: still hinges on that same absurd premise that he stumbled 295 00:19:56,680 --> 00:20:00,840 Speaker 1: on over a century ago, that it's possible to speak 296 00:20:00,840 --> 00:20:04,960 Speaker 1: into a machine and then have the machine speak back. 297 00:20:05,960 --> 00:20:12,280 Speaker 1: What a concept. I'm Gabe Lousier and hopefully you now 298 00:20:12,359 --> 00:20:16,240 Speaker 1: know a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 299 00:20:17,119 --> 00:20:19,920 Speaker 1: You can learn even more about history by following us 300 00:20:20,000 --> 00:20:24,639 Speaker 1: on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at t d i HC Show, 301 00:20:25,400 --> 00:20:28,199 Speaker 1: and if you have any comments or suggestions, you can 302 00:20:28,240 --> 00:20:31,159 Speaker 1: always send them my way at this Day at i 303 00:20:31,320 --> 00:20:35,440 Speaker 1: heart media dot com. Thanks to Chandler Mays for producing 304 00:20:35,480 --> 00:20:38,480 Speaker 1: the show, and thank you for listening. I'll see you 305 00:20:38,520 --> 00:20:42,440 Speaker 1: back here again tomorrow for another day in History class. 306 00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:54,040 Speaker 1: For more podcasts for my Heart Radio, visit the i 307 00:20:54,119 --> 00:20:56,760 Speaker 1: Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 308 00:20:56,760 --> 00:20:57,560 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.