In
December 1877, at Thomas Edison's Menlo Park Laboratory in New Jersey,
machinist John Kruesi used this sketch to fabricate the world's
first phonograph. On December 7, Edison unveiled the phonograph
at the New York office of Scientific American, the 19th century's
leading technical journal. The phonograph astonished the editors
who remarked, "no matter how familiar a person may be with
modern machinery...it is impossible to listen to the mechanical
speech without his experiencing the idea that his senses are deceiving
him." Edison
later improved sound recording technology at his laboratory in West
Orange, New Jersey, now part of Edison
National Historic Site. He eventually became one of the leading
manufacturers of entertainment phonographs in the early 20th century.
The sketch is part of the site's extensive archives, including Edison's
personal correspondence, business records, laboratory notebooks,
patents, and advertising material.
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