First phone call

10 March 1876, Boston, USA

On 10 March 1876, 29-year-old Alexander Graham Bell made history when he rang his assistant and briefly instructed him to: “Come here, I want to see you.” It was the first telephone call, made only three days after the publication of his patent. A year later, Bell set up a telephone company with the intention of improving and perfecting his invention, as well as installing wires across the United States. The impact of Bell’s device was vast and affected many areas, from businesses (whose owners would previously have to locate their premises near close contacts) to war. Indeed, during World War I telephone and telegraph wires ran along the trenches and allowed real-time conversations with command. Today we now have personal phones equipped with wireless capability and a variety of other applications that make us reachable, no matter where we are.