| Timeline |
| 1900 |
John J. Carty of New York Telephone installs loading coils, invented
by Michael Pupin, to extend range and reduce crosstalk. |
| 1904 |
Sir John Ambrose
Fleming invents the vacuum tube and diode |
| 1906 |
Lee De Forest
invents the triode |
|
| 1914 |
Underground
cables link Boston, New York, and Washington |
|
| 1915 |
Vacuum tube
amplifiers used for the first time in coast-to-coast telephone
circuits |
|
| 1920 |
AT&T develops the
time domain multiplexing concept |
|
| 1930 |
AT&T introduces higher-quality insulated wire. | | 1935 |
First telephone
call around the world. |
| 1939 |
Western Union
introduces coast-to-coast fax service. |
| 1945 |
AT&T lays 2000
miles of coaxial cable. |
| 1945 |
Science fiction
writer Arthur C. Clarke proposes communications satellites.
|
| 1946 |
Telcos install
nationwide numbering plan. |
| 1946 |
Bell introduces
the germanium point contact transistor |
|
| 1949 |
AT&T introduces
the famous black rotary Model 500 telephone. |
| 1950 |
Party lines make
up 75 percent of all telephone lines. |
| 1955 |
Modem first
described by Ken Krechmer, A. W. Morten, and H. E. Vaughn.
|
| 1958 |
AT&T introduces
datasets (modems) for direct connection. |
| 1958 |
Texas Instruments
introduces the silicon-based transistor. |
| 1959 |
AT&T introduces
the TH-1 1860-channel microwave system. |
| 1960 |
AT&T installs
first electronic switching system. |
| 1961 |
Bell Telephone
Labs releases design information for touch-tone dial to Western
Electric |
|
| 1962 |
AT&T introduces
T-1 multiplex service in Skokie, Illinois. |
| 1962 |
Telephone cables
start to use plastic insulation. |
| 1962 |
Paul Baron
introduces idea of distributed packet-switching networks |
|
| 1970 |
AT&T introduces
its ESS#2 electronic switch. |
| 1970 |
Bell Labs
releases design information to Western Electric for modular telephone
cords and jacks |
|
| 1975 |
Last manual telco
switchboard in Maine is retired. |
| 1975 |
Fiber optics
trials begin in U.S. and Europe |
|
| 1980 |
AT&T introduces
the DataSpeed 40, forerunner of "smart terminals" with data
processing capability |
|
| 1981 |
Bell Labs designs
network-embedded database of Personal Identification Numbers (PINs)
for calling card customers to be accessed by public telephones.
|
| 1982 |
Caller ID patent
filed by Carolyn Doughty, Bell Labs |
|
| 1987 |
Bellcore
introduces Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) concept which
has potential of multimedia transmission over nation's copper loops.
|
| 1993 |
Telecom Relay
Service available for the disabled. |
| 1995 |
Nationwide Caller
ID implemented. |
|
